The Ninja Games
by PsyMama17
Summary: Sixteen year old Inuzuka Hana is selected to participate in the annual Ninja Games; a fight to the death, live on T.V. If she is to win, she will have to make choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love. ItaHana. [Based on 'The Hunger Games' series by Suzanne Collins]
1. Chapter 1

**Yo! Psy-chan here with a new fanfic. It's based on the Hunger Games but I've added my own twists and turns to the story. Actually, it a mixture of all three Hunger Games books but I've converted it to the Ninja world (Hence, the name 'The Ninja Games.')**

**Hope you guys like it. Here's the first Chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (If I did, SasuSaku and my other favorite pairings would be rocking and Kabuto and Karin would be dead) and The Hunger Games (I wish I was Suzanne Collins.)**

**CHAPTER 1**

My eyes snap open and I'm greeted by the worn and old ceiling of our bedroom. It was dawn and the cold air blew in through the cracked glass of the window. Kiba shivered next to me and moved farther away from me, snuggling closer to our mother. Though he was a rebellious and wild kid, he was a momma's boy. I smirked as I climbed out of bed and covered my mother and brother properly with blankets to protect them from the cold morning air.

I looked at the two of them; my mother, Tsume, who was a strong, stubborn and fierce woman, looked much younger in her sleep. There was once a time when she became so vulnerable that it was as if it was only Kiba and me in the family but now she was back to her normal self.

Kiba was an exact replica of mom; the only difference was that he was a boy. He had the same spiky brown hair and the black eyes with silted pupils behind the closed eyelids. He had a lot of stamina but on the inside, he was as fragile as glass. Of course he was too stubborn to admit that; he took after my mom, remember?

On the floor of our bedroom, there are five dogs curled up together, sleeping, and trying to keep each other warm.

The truth is it was a bother having more mouths to feed when we barely had enough to eat ourselves. But it was a tradition; our clan's tradition. We, the Inuzukas, are to find ourselves a canine partner. Inuzukas were said to have descended from the canines. I was against it; tradition or not, our survival was at stake here.

But stubbornness runs in the family. Two against one; after my mother and Kiba refused to let them free, in time, I came to accept them too. They were pretty helpful when it comes to hunting and I realized that for an Inuzuka to survive in the ninja world, we need canine partners.

Besides, I doubt anyone in our small family could let them go; including myself.

My mom found Kuromaru, a big black wolf-like dog, when she was four. The two have been inseparable since then and I've seen my mom working at the mines with him; they made an excellent team.

Even Kiba, sweet little Kiba, had found his canine partner when he was ten. He named the dog Akamaru, although the little puppy's fur was white. He said he had his reasons. I wonder what they were.

I found mine when I was six. Three actually. Three grey puppies were shivering in the cold rain. I was returning from the academy when I saw them under a tree, hurdled together on a dirty gunny bag. I don't know why I did it but I brought them home and gave them my lunch, which I didn't eat in school. My mother told me I had found my canine partner . . . or partners.

I wasn't ready to accept them yet; our family was already suffering and was in the state of poverty. It was a sin to keep these innocent pups and would be a shame if these three beautiful creatures had died. However, the three refused to leave my side. Soon, without us realizing, the four of us became a team. I named them Hiro, Hotaru and Sora. Together, people in the village called them the Haimaru brothers because of their grey coat.

I put on my hunting boots, trousers and a shirt. I then tie my hair in a loose pony tail and put on my father's old jacket and I looked into the dirty mirror in the corner of the room. My hair was brown like my mom's and Kiba's but was long and straight. My eyes weren't like theirs; they were like my father's; two coal black eyes which held determination. The Inuzuka clan symbol, which consists of two fang-shaped red triangles, was drawn on either of my cheeks. Both mom and Kiba have the same tattoos too.

I tied my headband, which had the symbol of Konoha, around my forehead; all Genin were given headbands when they get promoted and were allowed to go on missions and earn money. I graduated from the academy seven years ago but I got promoted to Genin three years later and I've been trying to support my family ever since. However, Genin jobs didn't pay much money so the money me and my mom earned was barely enough.

I gave a low whistle and the Haimaru brothers got up immediately. I grabbed my forage bag and gestured for the three to follow me out. After the three woke up, tiny little Akamaru snuggled closer to Kuromaru for warmth.

Once out of the house, I walked down the dusty path, the Haimaru brothers following closely behind me. I looked around; a few people were up and were going about doing their morning chores. Konoha was once a lively place which had everything . . . or so they tell me.

Now it was just a dry barren land with broken houses here and there. The people here were like ghosts. They weren't living; they simply existed. Everyone here was skinny and many children were malnourished. The ANBU went about doing their business, monitoring the activities of the people. They worked directly under the Hokage.

The Hokage was our ruler. I glanced up to see the Hokage monument to see the faces of the past Hokages. I had asked my mom and she had told me their stories.

The first Hokage, Senju Hashirama, was one of the founders of Konoha. Everything was glorious in his reign and it was the same during the reign of the second, his brother Senju Tobirama. The third was a kind hearted old man who founded the Will of Fire; a will within every person to protect those precious to them.

The fourth was a kind man too. I was three when he was named Hokage. However, a demon fox had attacked our village and he died protecting the village. That same year was when Darkness overwhelmed everything.

Unknown to us, all the other villages in the Water, Earth, Wind and Lightening country was undergoing war. They had lost everything to powerful people who desired power. They all worked as one to attain power in each country. One of the third's disciple, Orochimaru, attacked Konoha and killed the Third, naming himself as the Hokage. A clan had rebelled against him the following year but was massacred.

I clenched my fists as I glared holes into Orochimaru's face, which was carved onto the mountain. Hotaru whined and licked my hand. I shook my head; we had work to do.

People nodded at me as I passed them; they knew me well but they knew my father better. He wasn't an Inuzuka. He was a poor man from Konoha who was a medic-nin. My mom, who lived in a much nicer part of Konoha, was injured on a mission and my dad had healed her. They fell in love with each other and got married. My mom must have really loved him if she abandoned the little bit of luxury she had for him. Now, the three of us, mom me and Kiba, were the only Inuzukas who lived in the poorest section of Konoha.

I saw a weak and tired-looking woman feed give her son some water and stale bread. That was the main issue in our village; food. We weren't allowed to hunt and to have food people had to have money. But money didn't grow on trees; we had to earn it. It wasn't easy.

Adults often worked in mines since Konoha had coal mines around. That's where my mom works now. If one if promoted to the post of Jonin, the money paid to them would last their family for a month. That's a lot! However, our snake of a Hokage hasn't promoted anyone to Jonin. Heck, people barely get promoted to Chunin.

Though hunting was off limits, I did it anyways. My dad taught me how. He lent me his weapons and took me to the woods with him. He taught me how to set snares and also taught me which of the plants that grew around were poisonous, edible or could be used for medical purposes. He was a smart man and even came up with how the Haimaru brothers and I could work as a team to catch us some dinner.

He taught me everything he knew before he died. He was using his medical ninjutsu to heal those who were injured in the mine. He didn't expect the mine to explode. No one did. There wasn't anything to bury either. I was eleven when he died. Five years later, I still wake up screaming for him to run.

I hid in the shadows of the houses as the ANBU passed by. I was nearing the forbidden section of Konoha; the woods. But what can I say? Our breakfast was in there.

There was a barbed wire fence separating Konoha from the forest. It was usually charged with electricity to prevent people from sneaking out and to protect the village from wild animals but it was too early for the security system to be activated. I doubt they will today. It was the day of reaping.

Even so, I closed my eyes and listened carefully for the hum which indicated that the fence was alive with electricity. But there was no sound. Sora nudged my thigh, pushing me towards the fence. I guess the coast was clear.

Hidden by some bushes and shrubs, I flatten out on my belly and slide under a stretch in the fence which my dad and I discovered. It was big enough for me and for the Haimaru brothers to fit through. Once we were on the other side, we head towards the woods.

From a hollow log, Hotaru pulled out a weapons' pouch and brought it to me. Once someone became a Genin, he or she was given a pouch of Shuriken and Kunai along with their headband. However, they had to return it back to the ANBU after their mission was complete. If people had weapons in their possession, it would be dangerous.

This pouch contained far more than just Kunai and Shuriken. It also had Senbons, Wire Strings, A few paper bombs and scrolls. It belonged to my father. He was a Chunin and a skilled medical ninja so he had gotten those weapons when he was promoted. The Senbons were a gift from my mother to congratulate him on becoming Chunin and it was his favorite weapon.

People only hunted in the hunting season. The Hokage had granted the ninjas to hunt once a year for meat. The meat was expensive and people often saved up money to buy them from the ninjas.

I never hunted during the hunting seasons since it was packed with hunters. I did it during the off season. People envied me for my bravery but no one complained or reported me to the Hokage or ANBU. Maybe it's because they enjoy the meat at a cheap price at the Hob since I traded there. Or maybe they wanted me to get caught and get a severe punishment.

If I were caught handling these weapons without an explanation, I'd be whipped or executed. I couldn't say my father gave them to me since the weapons are taken away if a Genin or Chunin dies. So I hid them here in the woods since the ANBU think that my father's weapons were blown to bits along with him in the mine explosion.

I smirked at the Haimaru brothers, "Okay guys; let's split up and hunt some game. We'll meet up at the usual place in twenty minutes. Let's move out!"

Hiro headed west, Hotaru headed east and Sora headed north. I strapped the weapons' pouch to my wait and pulled out a kunai before I started to walk southwards.

The morning was calm and still and since it was too early for human activity, I knew that the animals would be out scurrying about.

My tracking skills were excellent, thanks to my mother. After she got over the illness of pain and sorrow from my father's death, she started to train me and Kiba. Although it wasn't allowed, we were a clan. Her training us was simply passing down the Inuzuka clans traits and traditions. However, an ANBU was assigned to watch over the training sessions.

I could see some prints left by an animal; a deer perhaps. I smirked to myself. It was spring now and if I managed to catch a deer, I could trade it at the Hob for some bread and salt. The Hob was a black market located in an old warehouse that was once used as a weapons' base during the wars.

The old man, Ichiraku, who sold delicious ramen, bought most of my game and traded with other various things. He was a kind man; a friend of my father's. He would feed starving children once in a while and people respected him. They never took advantage of his kindness; we, the people of Konoha, aren't like that.

I shook my head and continued my deer hunt. I guess the creature was a rather clumsy one. It left its trails in the wide open and I could easily track it down. Not that I'm complaining. At last, I found my prey drinking water from a small stream. It was a fleshy fully grown deer.

My strategy was laid out; I would weaken its legs with my kunai and slow it down. Then I would use two shurikens to wound it and finally I would finish it off. I readied my kunai and was about to throw it when I heard movement.

Apparently, the deer had heard it and ran away. I swiftly threw my kunai but it missed and wedged itself on the bark old an old tree. I heard a rustling of leaves behind me and I knew that no rabbit or squirrel could make that much of movement.

I turned around expecting to see a vicious wild animal but instead, I was met with Kiba, his eyes wide as an owl's, holding in a scream and holding his hands up in defense. Akamaru, who was on riding on Kiba's head, let out a yelp of surprise.

I groaned, "Kiba, I told you not to follow me."

Kiba grinned at me, "What makes you think I'd listen to you sis?" He was wearing a white shirt and trousers underneath my old jacket. His spiky brown hair was hidden under the hood. Akamaru shook his tail in an excited manner and made the hood fall off of his head.

I glared at the twelve year old, "You better listen to me. You're scaring away my prey. I could have done good business at the Hob with a deer!"

Kiba shrugged, "I'll make it up to you." He picked up a rock from the ground and threw it to a nearby tree. Birds flew out of the tree in fear. I quickly pulled out a shuriken and threw it at the birds. It hit one of the birds and pinned the creature to a tree, straight through its chest.

I didn't like killing; it was gruesome. I was against the idea of hunting when my father talked about it but he explained that it was how life worked. Organisms depend on each other for survival. This was the circle of life.

Kiba laughed, "Nice shooting sis. But I expect nothing less from Inuzuka Hana." Akamaru barked in agreement.

I ruffled his hair, "Come on squirt. Let's see if we can catch a rabbit or two."

Kiba kept scaring away all the animals with his loud and clumsy movements but we did manage to catch a squirrel. I grabbed the bird which Kiba and I had nailed earlier and cleaned my shuriken. After putting them back into my pouch, I grabbed the dead bird and grinned at Kiba, "Let's go; I told the Haimaru brothers to come at the usual place."

Akamaru barked. We both turned to see him wagging his tail eagerly with a dead mouse in front of him. Kiba laughed and went over to scratch his ear, "Good boy Akamaru!" Akamaru licked Kiba's hand in response.

I chuckled softly, "Well I think you two make a good hunting team. You might catch something if you're not so loud." Kiba stuck his tongue out at me and grinned.

We went to our usual place. It was over a hill on a rock ledge overlooking the valley. Many dandelions grew around and I often plucked them for dandelion salad when we had nothing to eat. A thicket of berry bushes hid the place from unwanted eyes. A plus point; the berries were edible.

Hiro, Hotaru and Sora were already there. Hiro was sitting lazily on the grass with two fat rabbits in front of him, Hotaru was licking the blood off of his paws and had a plump quail in front of him and Sora barked excitedly and nudged a squirrel in front of him.

I scratched Sora's ear, "Looks like we both got squirrel." I held up the squirrel to him and he licked my cheek in response.

"Oh I almost forgot," said Kiba. He pulled out something from his pocket; a piece of bun. "Look what I got."

"No way," I said as I took it from his hands and inhaled it. It made my mouth water and the bread was still warm. "How'd you get it?"

"Old man Ichiraku," he said with a grin. "He said it was payment for helping him in carrying the flour last time."

I raised an eyebrow at him, "Carrying flour?"

"What can I say? I'm a strong kid." He said cockily. "Right Akamaru?" Akamaru barked in agreement. I rolled my eyes as Kiba made grunting noises as he did a couple of 'muscular' poses which looked funny since his body was so scrawny.

I used my kunai to divide the bun into six equal pieces for each of us. I plucked some berries from the bushes and placed them on the rock which we were using as a table.

"Happy Ninja Games," Kiba said copying the high pitched voice of the upbeat woman who arrives in Konoha once a year to read out the names at the reaping. "And may the odds-" he tossed a berry in a high arc towards me.

I caught the berry in my mouth and the sweet juice exploded across my tongue the second I sank my teeth into its skin, "-be _ever_ in your favor!" I finished with the same tone.

Kiba and I laughed at our silliness. Kiba tells me that I only smile and laugh when I'm out here in the woods. He's probably right; back at home, I could never be the same around mom since she had left us once with the world on Kiba and my shoulders.

After my father had died, my mom was so torn that she stopped talking or eating. After my father had died, my mom was so torn that she stopped talking or eating. We were left on our own. Kiba was only seven and I, a scrawny eleven year old, could barely do anything.

Kiba was only seven and I, a scrawny eleven year old, could barely do anything.

After she became better, I should say our relationship was now complicated. I refused her help unless it was something to do with Kiba and avoided her as much as I could. The ignoring was reduced but to this day, I try to do as much as possible on my own.

"What now Hana?" asked Kiba.

Hotaru barked and pointed his snout towards the woods. There was a lake which had fish and edible roots in them. It was about a ten minute walk from where we were. I looked at the sky; there was still time before everyone was up and getting ready for the reaping.

I stood up and brushed the dirt off of my pants, "Hotaru's right. Let's get some fish before we head for the Hob."

The rest of the morning, we spent catching fish. We even took a quick swim in the lake. It was fun; we had a water fight and we also had a competition to see who could hold his or her breath longer. Surprisingly, Kiba won in the end.

But we had to head back. I didn't know we had spent so much time in the lake. The sun was already up and was slowly moving overhead.

Just as I thought, the fence was still not charged with electricity. I guess the ANBU thought that no one would be sneaking out on reaping day. That or maybe the electricity wasn't working. Either way Kiba, Akamaru, the Haimaru brothers and I snuck back into the village through the stretch in the fence and covered it up with the shrubs and bushes before be quietly made our way the Hob.

There weren't many people at the Hob but those who were there tipped their hats or nodded at me. Some didn't acknowledge our presence and kept their focus on their food. Kiba grinned and waved at some of the people. They smiled or waved back. I nodded back and made my way to the back where Ichiraku was.

Old man Ichiraku's daughter Ayame was wiping the pots and bowls with a rag. Ayame noticed us coming in and smiled politely, "Hello Hana-san, Kiba-kun."

I nodded in greeting. Kiba gave her a toothy grin, "Hi Ayame."

She looked different today. Her brown hair, which was usually in a loose ponytail, was down and she was wearing a baby blue dress which reached her knees and a pair of matching shoes; reaping clothes.

"You look different." I commented.

Ayame blushed, "Well I have to look presentable in front of the Hokage if my name is drawn right?"

I resisted the urge to tell her how slim the chances of her name being drawn, during the reaping, were. But I knew it would sound a bit rude. The reaping system was unfair and the poor got the worst of it.

Once a boy or a girl turns twelve, they become eligible for reaping day. Their name would be written once. This will continue year after year until they turn eighteen, the final year of eligibility. This happens in every village of the five countries. The fire country had only Konoha left. The rest were bombed and massacred during the Dark Days.

If a person's name is drawn during the reaping, that person will represent the village in the annual Ninja Games; a fight to death on live T.V. Originally, it was called the Hunger Games but people started to call it the 'Ninja Games' since the names that were drawn were mostly of Ninjas.

One boy and one girl will be chosen from each village as tributes. People from the villages of the five countries will be pitted against one another in an arena, in the Land of Iron, to fight to their deaths. The victor will be awarded with various prizes, including food, better shelter etc.

However, people like Ayame, who have a better living standard than us, had their names written from when they were twelve. Plus she wasn't a ninja. I had my name written twice a year for being a Genin and I also signed up for tesserae in exchange for my name being written more number of times.

Each tessera is worth a year supply of grain and oil. After my father died, my mother stopped working and we had nothing. I had to do it; for the sake of the family. This year, at the age of sixteen, I would have my name written thirty two times.

"You should wear something pretty too," said Ayame. "It's reaping day after all." I nodded but the truth was I didn't want to wear a dress of look pretty for something as dreaded as reaping day. But rules are rules.

Ichiraku emerged from the kitchen. He looked at us and gave us a weary grin, "Well hello Hana. Are you here to trade something with me?"

In response, I held up the rabbits, squirrels, quail and Akamaru's dead mouse. Ichiraku gave a throaty chuckle and wiped his hands on his apron. He traded the catch with two loaves of bread, tea leaves, cheese and basil leaves.

After thanking him, he headed home to change our clothes for reaping. It was already one o'clock in the afternoon. Wow. Time sure flies huh?

Tsume was wearing a simple grey shirt with black trousers and black boots. Her hair was wild and spiky like Kiba's and she wore some purple lipstick; it wasn't a cosmetic. It was more like war paint. Apparently, the Inuzukas liked bright colors.

"I wake up to find both my kids gone," said Tsume. She turned to Kiba. "What did I tell you about sneaking off young man?"

Kiba pouted, "You allow Hana to go."

"That's because I'm older than you squirt," I said with a chuckle. I placed the fish on the table. "These are for later."

Tsume nodded, "Both of you should wash up."

"We did," I told her. "We bathed at the lake."

"Okay then," said Tsume. "I've laid out your clothes for you. You should change; I'll make lunch."

Kiba shakily walked to our bedroom. Akamaru followed his master into the room. I could tell why he was nervous; it was his first reaping. I walked into the bedroom to find Kiba sitting on the floor hugging his knees as Akamaru nuzzled his nose on Kiba's leg.

"Hey," I said softly as I sat next to him. "I know you're scared; it's your first reaping after all. But don't worry, nothing will happen."

Kiba looked at me with teary eyes, "Promise?"

I smiled and hugged him, "I promise. Now let's get ready."

Kiba was wearing a pair of brown trousers and a white button-down shirt. He tried to get his hair to stay down but it kept on getting back up. In the end, he gave up and he and Akamaru left the room to give me some privacy.

Mom had laid out a pale yellow colored dress, something from her past, with white shoes. It was hard to imagine my mother, a fierce woman, wearing this pretty thing. I was baffled; this dress was from her past and it meant a lot to her. I ran my fingers along the smooth fabric.

"I hope you like it." Tsume said from behind me. I turned to find her leaning on the door.

"Are you sure it's okay for me to wear it?" I asked her. She nodded. After I changed into the dress, she did my hair for me. She put my hair in one single braid over my shoulder. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out something that made me gasp.

It was the fang, probably of a wolf's, tied tightly with a rope to form a necklace. I knew that necklace; it belonged to my father.

"It was from your father's first kill," Tsume said with a small smile. She put it over my head and adjusted it so that the fang lay on my chest. "A wolf was what he killed! He always wore that for luck. Now you should wear it."

I could feel tears sting in my eyes. This was a very kind gesture. I suddenly felt strong with the wolf fang around my neck. I looked at my mother, "Thank you." She simply nodded with a small smile. I tied my head band around my neck; I had to wear it to show that I was a Genin.

The Haimaru brothers whined and hurdled at my feet. I bent down towards them. I scratched Hiro's ear with my left hand and Hotaru's with my right. I nuzzled my nose against Sora's fur, "It'll be okay."

We ate some rabbit meat with berries and water. None of us had much of an appetite but we ate anyways. We put the fish away along with the stuff I had traded from the Hob. It would be our dinner; it was supposed to be special and to celebrate if mine or Kiba's name wasn't drawn today.

The chances of Kiba's names being drawn are slim since he had just graduated from the academy last year. I didn't want him to be a ninja but he wanted to be one so bad that I could refuse. He hadn't gotten his headband yet either so his chances were slim. As for me . . . well . . .

"We should go," said Tsume. "It's getting late." I nodded and stood up. Kiba was still sitting at the table with a worried expression. I pressed my lips to his forehead and took his head. We then headed for the town square.

The square was actually one of the pleasant places of Konoha but today, there was an air of suspense around. The camera crew was on the roof tops like vultures to record the reaping today. People file in silently and sign in. Reaping Day is also a good way to keep tabs on the village's population.

I could see them lined up; the eighteen year olds in the front and the twelve year olds at the back, in the last. The boys were on the left side of the square and the girls were on the right. Family members were lined up around the perimeter holding tightly to one another while others, who have no love at stake or no longer care, slip among the crowd.

I gave Kiba and Akamaru one last encouraging look before joining the other sixteen year olds. I saw Ayame and she gave me a smile. I gave a small smile in return. The Haimaru brothers stood protectively around my feet; they were allowed since they were a part of me and a tradition of my clan. We all stared at the temporary stage in front of us.

There were two chairs, a podium and two large glass bowls; one for the boys and one for the girls. I watched as the woman, who read out the names, and the Hokage fill the chairs. I forgot the woman's name but she was from Kumo, the capital of the Lightening Country.

The Hokage, Orochimaru, was in his Hokage's uniform and had two ANBU accompanying him. He had a snaky grin on his face and his sleek and oily black hair was tied in a high ponytail under the Hokage's hat. The woman fluttered to the podium, her long golden locks flying out behind her. She smiles to the audience.

"Welcome!" She beamed happily. "Happy Ninja Games! May the odds be _ever_ in your favor!"

Orochimaru then steps up to the podium and talks about Konoha. He doesn't mention how he murdered our beloved Third but he talks about how Konoha was founded and about how the previous Hokage never made alliances with the other countries like he had.

The Haimaru brothers let out a low growl. I could punch Orochimaru in the face if I were given the chance! The alliance the Kages had now was exclusively of power and to put themselves on top. The alliance that they had was only for holding the Ninja Games. On the inside, I bet they're dying to rip each other's throats out. Stupid lying snake bastard!

He then talks about a clan who rebelled against Konoha and was massacred. He reminded the people that no one shall break the alliance between the five great countries for a bright and happy future. Pfft! Bright and happy my foot. Why were we suffering then?

The woman then stepped up to the stage after Orochimaru is seated. She smiled, "Ladies first."

The square was so silent that we could hear a pin drop. My heart was beating loudly and I could hear it in my ears. In fact, it was beating so fast that I almost missed the woman reading out the name from the slip of paper which she had picked.

"Inuzuka Hana."

The odds were most definitely _not_ in my favor.

**Told ya I'd add twists and turns. Stay tuned for the next chapter. Until then, Ja ne!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys. Here's the second chapter. Oh and thank you so very much to Yuaki1707 for being the first person to read and review. You should totally read the book. The movie is . . .okay but not all great. **

**Hope you guys like it. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (If I did, SasuSaku and my other favorite pairings would be rocking and Kabuto and Karin would be dead) and The Hunger Games (I wish I was Suzanne Collins.)**

**CHAPTER 2**

"_Inuzuka Hana."_

I could hear that woman's high-pitched voice echoing over and over again in my head, saying my name. I had no idea what to feel. Sad? Horrified? I don't know. I was . . . just surprised. I already knew that the odds won't be in my favor; that glass bowl had thirty two slips of papers that had the name 'Inuzuka Hana' written on them, after all.

The girls moved to either side, giving me a path that led directly to the stage. The Haimaru brothers whined softly. I patted Hiro's head and took a deep breath before slowly walking towards the stage. I could see people looking at me in pity but I didn't look their way; I didn't want to be pitied. It made me feel vulnerable and weak.

The Haimaru brothers walked nervously behind me. I didn't want to bring them into this but they had to go with me; clan rules. I hated it . . . especially in times like these. I met my mother's eyes which were filled with tears. I gave her a reassuring look; she had to stay strong.

A wave of worry rushed over me; what if mom left us again? What if, while I was in the games, she left Kiba all on his own? I clenched my fists; I wouldn't allow that. I would talk to her about it later.

When I reached halfway towards the stage, I heard a child scream. I turned to see Kiba, fighting in the arms of an ANBU, with tears streaming down his face as he looked at me desperately. Akamaru barked at the ANBU for grabbing his master.

Without thinking, I ran towards Kiba and snatched him out of the ANBU's hands. I hugged and shushed him as he hung on to my dress tightly. Akamaru whimpered as he snuggled closer to my leg.

I pulled away and looked at Kiba in the eye, "Kiba, take Akamaru, go find mom and stay with her."

Kiba shook his head, "N-no!"

"Everything is going to be okay!" I told him as the ANBU grabbed my arm and pulled me back towards the stage. I closed my eyes and forced myself to look away from my brother who was crying so much, like he was dying. From the corner of my eye, I saw my mom move towards where he was, with Kuromaru running behind her.

I stepped up onto the stage and the woman smiled at me, "Was that your brother?"

I nodded stiffly. She smiled, "Well maybe he might join you in the games." I sent her a cold glare which made her yelp softly and jump a little. She then composed herself and went over to call out the name of the male tribute.

"_Well maybe he might join you in the games." _I could punch her for saying that but I forced myself to calm down. I bit the inside of my cheeks until I could taste the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. The worse thing is that the people of Kumo, the Capitol city of the Lightening Country, embrace the Ninja Games as an extreme sport. It's disgusting! I would never want Kiba to be selected for such a horrid thing.

Innocent Kiba who is too wild and naïve and is already ready to throw away his life if it means the well-being of the family. Though he has a strong will, the will of fire which barely exists, the cruel Ninja Games would crush him like a mere bug. I wouldn't allow that to happen to my brother.

But today was Kiba's first reaping. Kiba was one name among a thousand slips of paper so the odds of Kiba being chosen as this year's male tribute are very slim. But that still doesn't soothe my nerves. I'm still worried.

However, I don't even have the time to pray for Kiba's safety when I hear the woman call out the name, "Uchiha Sasuke."

Uchiha Sasuke. I know him. He was a classmate of Kiba's and I believe they were friends too. He was quite talented and was the topper of the class, according to Kiba. He was thirteen years old, meaning this was his second reaping. He had already graduated at the age of nine but he wasn't a Genin yet. I didn't know him personally but younger girls would talk endlessly about him. Also, there was something about him. Something about his name. . .

Sasuke's onyx eyes widened a bit but he sighed and started to walk towards the stage, as if it were a chore he was assigned to do, with his hands in his pockets. His midnight blue hair stood up at the back of his head rebelliously. He was only thirteen and yet he didn't look frightened at all. Like me, he seemed surprised. Only surprised.

Then, something unexpected happened. A voice spoke out from the group of boys, "I volunteer as tribute."

I could see looks of surprise and murmurs erupt from the crowd. Sasuke immediately turned around to face the person who had spoken. My eyes widened when I saw just who it was. Now I realized why the name 'Uchiha Sasuke' seemed familiar.

The woman squealed, "Oh my! Konoha's very first volunteer tribute!"

I saw Sasuke telling something, I couldn't hear, to a boy, about seventeen years old, with long black hair tied in a loose ponytail. Both boys shared the same onyx eyes indicating they were brothers. They were in some sort of argument.

As Sasuke's voice raised, I could make out that their conversation was about who was going to participate in the games. It wasn't a fight for who gets the glory of fighting in the Ninja Games; it was a simple act to protect one another. I looked at the older boy, who had volunteered, again.

Finally, Sasuke was taken away by the ANBU while the other boy walked towards the stage. He was wearing a simple black shirt with black trousers. His headband was around his forehead and he had an emotionless expression on his face.

I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed with all my heart, _'Please don't let it be him.'_

The woman walked towards the boy, "What's your name?"

"Uchiha Itachi." He replied monotonously. Nope, the odds were not in my favor today. I could see Orochimaru smiling sympathetically at the boy.

"So that Sasuke boy was your brother correct?" The woman asked excitedly. I could sense the flirty tone in her voice which indicated she was attracted to the Uchiha. Itachi simply answered with a 'yes' and stepped away from her.

The woman laughed, "Don't want him stealing all the glory eh? Come on everybody! Let's give a big hand for Konoha's first volunteer tribute!"

But nobody claps. I don't know what made me do it. It was like as if my hand had a life of its own. I turned to Itachi and my sudden movement made him look my way. I pressed my three middle fingers to my lips and held it out towards him. It was an old gesture which meant admiration, thanks and goodbye to someone you love. Not that I loved him though.

He raised an eyebrow at me. I held his gaze and I almost lost myself in his eyes. Soon every member of the crowd follows my lead and holds out pressed their three middle fingers to their lips and held it out. I saw an emotion of sorrow and gratitude flicker briefly across Itachi's eyes before he gave a small bow to the crowd. Maybe I was imagining it; I hardly see him show _any _emotion.

Orochimaru stepped up to the podium once again and read out a speech about the Treaty of Allegiance. It was like this every year. It was required I wasn't listening to a word that he was saying. I kept glancing at Itachi.

Uchiha Itachi was one of the most popular boys in Konoha, like his younger brother. The girls my age talk about him endlessly. He is truly something. He graduated at the age of six and became a Genin a year later. When I became a Genin, he was promoted to Chunin and now he was in the ANBU. He had gotten an opportunity no one had ever gotten. Orochimaru favors him a lot too.

'_Why him?' _I can't help but think. I try to convince myself that it doesn't matter. That gesture was something done out of admiration; I admit it, he was brave to do that for his brother. But Uchiha Itachi and I aren't even friends or even neighbors. We don't speak to each other. Our only real communication happened several years ago. He has probably forgotten it by now. But I still remember and I know I'll never ever forget it . . .

It was during the worst time; my father was killed in a mine explosion. We were given a small compensation to last for one month at which my mother was supposed to find a job. Only she didn't. My mother had left me and Kiba alone to fend for ourselves. She simply stayed in bed with a dazed expression with her eyes fixed on some point in the distance. Kuromaru wasn't of much help either; he was depressed about his mistress's behavior.

I was terrified. My mother had locked herself away in a dark world of sadness and I realized that I lost both my father and my mother. I took over the as the head of the family at the age of eleven, with Kiba just seven. The Haimaru brothers tried to help me as much as they could but even they were weak and hungry like us. The money was slowly running out and tried my best to keep Kiba and myself looking presentable. If the ANBU found out that my mother could no longer care for us, they would take us away from her to the community home.

I saw the kids from the community home; the angry marks on their faces, the dull look in their eyes and the look of hopelessness written all over their faces. I couldn't let that happen to Kiba. He would be crushed. So I kept our struggle a secret from everyone.

We were slowly starving to death. The Haimaru brothers were so weak and could barely support themselves but they followed me around to help me out anyways. Kiba was growing thinner and thinner by the day and I was afraid he would get ill. We didn't even have the medicine to treat him and my medical ninjutsu wasn't perfect. I wasn't my father.

I kept telling myself to hold on just a bit longer; at least until April thirteenth. I would turn twelve on April thirteenth and would be able to sign up for the tesserae which would get me the grain and oil to feed us. But there were several weeks to go and we could be dead by then.

Starvation wasn't an uncommon fate in Konoha and the older people who can't feed themselves, children of a family who has too many to feed and those who were helplessly sitting against a wall or lying on the floor or was wandering around the streets are taken by the ANBU to the community homes. But they can't even survive there. The death of the people in the community home was said to be natural or by a disease but that fooled no one.

On the evening of my encounter with Uchiha Itachi, it was cold and gloomy. The sun had long since disappeared behind the mountains and there were no stars in the sky. The sky was covered with angry looking clouds which looked like they were going to release a massive amount of rain. The moon emitted a dim light from behind the clouds.

After forcing the Haimaru brothers to stay home and take care of Kiba I had gone out to sell Kiba's baby clothes at the Public Market but there were no takers. I wanted to trade them at the Hob but I was scared to go in there alone. Even though I had been there occasionally, I was afraid to go without my father.

The wind was blowing violently and I shaking with cold. I was in no condition to do much; I was weak since we had eaten, for the last few days, nothing but boiled water and old mint leaves which I had found in the back of a cupboard. The wind carried away the baby clothes out of my feeble trembling arms. I watched it blow away with the wind but made no attempt to go after them; no one wanted those clothes anyway.

I couldn't go home because at home was my mother who sat in bed like a statue and my younger brother with cracked lips and hollow cheeks. The Haimaru brothers were there too and I could bear the thought of them dying due to lack of food. I couldn't walk into that house with my hands empty of any hope.

I found myself stumbling along a lane behind the houses, shops and buildings of the wealthy people and the ANBU in Konoha. I could smell food from their windows and it made my stomach growl and my mouth to salivate.

Stealing is a serious crime that is punishable by death but there might be something in the trash cans and those were fair game. There might be something, _anything_, which no one but my family was desperate enough to eat. Unfortunately, the bins had just been emptied.

I don't know how but I ended up behind the Hokage's quarters. I could hear laughter and the smell of some deliciously cooked bird; the Hokage was having dinner with his ANBU. Although I didn't like Orochimaru, maybe there would be something descent to eat in his bin. However, after my shaking fingers managed to open the lid, I looked inside and found it to be so heartlessly bare.

Suddenly, I heard a voice slurred voice yelling at me. It was an ANBU, who was clearly drunk, cursing and yelling at me to stop pawing through the Hokage's trash and that I, a poor and filthy waif, wasn't allowed in this part of town. The words were harsh and ugly, even if the man was drunk and I had nothing to say in defense.

He grabbed my hair and threw me to the side like I was a rag doll. I cried out in pain and the tears streamed down my face. I reached up to brush them away. As I carefully replaced the lid and backed away, I noticed him, a boy with black hair and onyx eyes looking intently at me.

I knew him. We went to school together but he graduated earlier than me. In fact, he graduated earlier than everyone in our year. Usually the kids only graduate at the age of ten or eleven but he had done the impossible and graduated at the age of six. He was currently a Genin. The Hokage favored him a lot since he was said to be very talented. I didn't know his name and we weren't friends since he was stuck with the town kids.

He spoke in a calm and mature voice as he ushered the drunk ANBU back inside. After they left, I made my way farther away from the Hokage's quarters and leaned on the old apple tree in his yard. I realized that it was hopeless; there was nothing more I could do for my family.

My knees buckled and I slid down the tree trunk to its roots. Tears kept streaming down my face. Soon, the clouds released their moisture and the rain poured down heavily. The wind blew mercilessly and engulfed me in the bitter cold. My clothes were so soaked and it left me chilled to the bone. It was too much; I was so weak and oh so tired.

"_Let me die," _I thought miserably. _"Let me die here in the rain. Just put me out of my misery."_

There was a clatter in the Hokage's quarters and I heard the ANBU yelling again and the sound of a sharp blow. I then heard the Hokage give his creepy laugh and saying something through his laughter. I vaguely wondered what was going on.

"I'm heading out. I'll throw these on the way." I heard the boy, from earlier, say. He walked into the rain and I couldn't help but wonder if he was cold; he was only wearing a blue t-shirt and white training shorts. He walked towards me with his hands in his pocket. On impulse, I clumsily stood up and hid behind the tree. I slowly peered at the boy from my hiding.

He never looked my way. He walked directly by me and I shrank away from him, trying to hide myself. He then turned towards me. The action startled me so I let out a soft yelp. He never looked at me but I noticed the red angry mark which stood out on the fair skin of his cheek.

That ANBU had hit him. I was shocked; I thought being closer to the Hokage would make like easier for him. I didn't realize that such a thing could happen. He tossed two objects in my direction and I caught them quickly. My eyes widened; the objects he tossed to me were two loaves of bread. It was burnt on the outside but if the burnt chunks were torn off, it would be as good as any other bread.

I looked up to see if the boy had really meant to toss it in my direction it but he wasn't there; he was already gone. He must have meant for me to have it. I shoved the loaves up under my shirt and wrapped my jacket about me tightly. I walked home as quickly as my shaky legs could carry me. The bread emitted a searing heat into my skin but I clutched it tighter, as if it were my lifeline.

By the time I reached home, the loaves of bread had cooled somewhat but the insides were still warm. When I dropped them on the table, the Haimaru brothers wagged their tail excitedly and Kiba's hands reached up to tear off a chunk but I made them all sit first.

I forced my mother to join us and Kuromaru helped me. I poured some warm tea and tore off the burnt parts of the bread. Sora liked them so I fed it to him. We ate one whole loaf slice by slice. It was good bread filled with nuts and raisins.

I put my clothes to dry at the fire and crawled into bed. I fell into a dreamless sleep and it didn't occur to me until the next morning that the boy might have burnt the bread on purpose. Tossed it in the fire and risked a beating just to get them to me. I shook off the thought. Besides, why would he do that? We didn't even know each other. Even so, tossing me the bread was an enormous kindness.

I would pass the boy around the streets. He didn't acknowledge me in any way but once I found him staring at me from a roof top when I was returning from my hunt. He had seen me come out of the woods. We locked eyes for a moment but he looked away and went off. I was afraid he was going to report me but he didn't I was never summoned or taken away by the ANBU.

One day, I saw a dandelion growing behind our house. It was the first dandelion of the year. I thought of the hours spent with my father in the woods and I knew just how we were going to survive. I could never shake the connection between this boy, Uchiha Itachi, and the bread that gave me hope and the dandelion that reminded me that I wasn't doomed.

I feel like I owe him something and I hate owing people. Maybe if I had thanked him at some point, I wouldn't be so conflicted right now. I had thought about it but he was always with the ANBU and so the opportunity never seemed to present itself.

And it never will. Now we were going to be thrown in an arena and were expected to fight each other to the death. How can I thank him now? I don't think it would be sincere if I'm trying to slit his throat with my kunai.

After Orochimaru finishes, he motions for me and Itachi to shake hands. His hands are warm. He looks at me straight in the eye and gives me a small nod which I think is meant to be a way of reassuring and saying good luck. We turn back to face the crowd as the national anthem of Konoha plays.

"_There are twenty four of us; odds are someone else will kill him before I do." _I think to myself.

But then again, the odds have not been very dependable of the late.

**Well that's that. Stay tuned for chapter 3 ^_^ **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys. 3****rd**** chapter is now done. First off:**

**Yuaki1707: **Thank you for the kind words. I'm glad you liked it. In the book, it's the girl volunteering for her sister but here I did it the other way around. LOL. Read the book ASAP! It's awesome and you will never want to stop thinking about it. It's so addictive…like a drug!

**damnheart.o3: **Arigatou. You should totally read the hunger games. It's totally kick butt! Seriously though, read the book. It's awesome. I read it what? Three months ago? And I can't get it out of my head. You will totally feel the magic of the book. It's . . . how shall I put this? Unput-down-able! (Is that a word?)

**Moonlight's Servant: **Yeah well IDK if everything is copy-pasted from the book since I borrowed it from a friend and read it about three months ago. Hah! Maybe I have awesome memory power. I got the book for a birthday present but it's with my friend (has been for a long time) and well I don't plan on making it entirely 'Hunger Games' because that would be indirectly murdering Suzanne Collins so even though I appreciate honesty, I firmly say it's not boring since right now I only finished 3 chapters. You no likey then don't read. ^_^ Simple as that.

**Special thanks to my beloved assistant, Chicky-chan (chickypoo8) for always supporting me and for being there for me. This chapter is dedicated to you. ILY!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (If I did, SasuSaku and my other favorite pairings would be rocking and Kabuto and Karin would be dead) and The Hunger Games (I wish I was Suzanne Collins.)**

**CHAPTER 3**

Once the anthem finished, Itachi and I were ushered inside the Hokage's office. Well, I was ushered. Since Itachi was an ANBU himself, he didn't need guidance. As the doors closed behind us, shutting us out from the crowd, we started to walk up a long flight of stairs.

Itachi looked at the two ANBU behind me, "We'll go up to Orochimaru on our own; I'll take her up. You two can go."

"Our orders are to escort you two up to the Hokage's office. Well, mostly her." One of the ANBU said flatly. I resisted the urge to snap back at him; I wasn't a baby! I didn't need babysitting.

"We don't want our tributes running off now do we?" The other ANBU said with a throaty chuckle.

"I'm not running away." I muttered under my breath. The Haimaru brothers growled lowly near me but I gave them a look to tell them to calm down. The last thing we needed before we went to the Land of Iron was trouble with the ANBU.

The ANBU had said something about tributes running away. Maybe the tributes have tried in the past but I've never heard of or seen them try. Either way, I wasn't going to try escape. Besides, even if I did try to run away, I'll just be captured and taken back or maybe even executed.

Itachi glared at them, "Are you underestimating me? Don't forget I'm an ANBU too."

I was sure I saw a tint of red in Itachi's eyes. Or maybe I was hallucinating. Whatever it may be, the two ANBU muttered something under their breaths and walked off. I smirked as I watched them go; those two were way older than Itachi and yet they feared him. And they were Jonin too! Now that was power. Wait. That's not a good thing for me. If Itachi could scare two Jonins with just a glare . . .

"Are you coming or what?" Itachi asked monotonously. I turned to look at him and noticed he was already at the top of the stairs. I nodded and quickly climbed up the stairs, the Haimaru brothers trotting behind me.

I followed Itachi down a long corridor with many doors. As we walked, I couldn't help but notice the picture on the back of Itachi's shirt. It was a red and white uchiwa fan; the symbol of the Uchiha clan. Itachi and his brother, Sasuke, were the only two Uchihas in the village. I didn't get it. Shouldn't the Uchihas be around? They were one of the founders of the village, apart from the First Hokage, after all.

I tried asking my mother but she told me I was too young then. I asked my father and he simply told me that the Uchihas were now no more. It had confused me. I tried asking people in the village but people avoided the topic as if it were taboo. An ANBU heard me asking someone at the Hob and I got my hair pulled. So after that, I never questioned about the Uchihas. But that doesn't mean I'm not curious.

We stopped in front of a door at the end of the corridor. All the doors were brown with metal knobs but this one was purple in color with a golden knob. I guess Orochimaru likes his doors fancy. Itachi simply twisted the knob and pushed the door open.

"Hey! Should we knock first?" I said to him. He didn't reply. He simply stepped inside. I looked at the Haimaru brothers and shrugged; I guess not. I followed Itachi inside.

Right in front of me was the view of Konoha through large glass windows and above the windows hung the pictures of the previous Hokages. There was a shelf in the corner with some books and scrolls. A large desk in the centre of the room and a person was sitting on the chair, grinning at us; Orochimaru.

He chuckled, "Well we've got two fighters as tributes this year. Normally, I'd just wish the tributes good luck and send them on their way but this is different. Both of you are from two clans with . . . special techniques."

My shoulders stiffened; I didn't like him at all. The Haimaru brothers crouched and growled at Hokage, their teeth bared in hatred. Immediately, two ANBU appeared in front of us.

Orochimaru waved his hand, "Now, now, we were just chatting. Off with you two; I'll be fine." The ANBU bowed respectfully and left in a flash.

Orochimaru sighed, "They don't like me do they?" I pursed my lips and stroked Sora's head. Slowly and reluctantly, they calmed down. I looked back at the Hokage.

"No matter," said Orochimaru. "I have gone through your ninja registration Hana-kun. " I shuddered a bit at the way he said my name; really creepy!

"You graduated from the academy at the age of eleven and got promoted to Genin at the age of fourteen," Orochimaru said with a snaky grin. "You are a part of the Inuzuka clan and have the Haimaru brothers as your partners. Also, you are a medic-nin."

"You've done your homework Hokage-sama," I muttered. "But I disagree with one thing; I'm not a medic-nin." I did do a little bit of medical ninjutsu but I wasn't perfect. I knew all the medical herbs and how to prepare elixirs and I often thought about working as a doctor or a vet but I didn't risk it; if something went wrong, I didn't want to be responsible.

Itachi looked at me with a surprised expression; apparently, no one talked back to the Hokage. I bit my own tongue; would I get punished for that?

Instead, Orochimaru laughed, "You've got spunk, girl. I admire that. There are very few medics in Konoha. It's a shame you aren't a medic-nin like your father. A fine man. Too bad he died in that explosion."

I almost lost it. Orochimaru was rubbing it in my face on purpose. Was he toying with me? Trying to make me vulnerable? Yeah well I wasn't going to act that way in front of him. I'm not weak and I will stand firm. I looked at him straight in the eye, "Yeah. Too bad."

Orochimaru looked at me for a long time and then turned his gaze to Itachi. He smiled at Itachi, "One of my finest ANBU going to participate in the Ninja Games. It's sad really. Konoha will be losing one of their two Uchihas. However, I must say I feel proud; an _Uchiha_ participating in the Ninja Games!"

I saw Itachi clenching his fists. What did Orochimaru mean? Were the Uchihas related to something about the Ninja Games? Whatever it may be, my curiosity has risen again. There was a brief silence before Itachi spoke, "And it would be even better if an _Uchiha _came back as a victor."

A shiver ran down my spine. Oh geez, if Itachi was that confident, then I'm a goner. And the games haven't even begun! Also, those words seemed to have a double meaning to them but I didn't understand what it was. The Haimaru brothers sensed the air of anxiety around me and moved closer to my side.

Orochimaru seemed to understand so he let out a loud laugh, "Very true! And who knows? You might emerge as the victor; you have your Sharingan after all." Orochimaru's words were like ice being injected through my veins. How could I have forgotten?!

I didn't know much about the Uchihas but I did know that their clan had a kekkei genkai called the Sharingan. I have never seen it in real life but I did see pictures; the deadly blood red eyes with three black comas made the Uchihas invincible. Now knowing Itachi had the Sharingan and the fact that he was an ANBU and a Chunin, I realized Itachi could be the strongest opponent ever.

However, I wasn't going to let that information bring me down. I was an Inuzuka. I had some tricks up my own sleeve as well. I looked at the Haimaru brothers. Their tails became erect and tall as they looked at me. I guess they were thinking about the same thing I was.

"So did you bring us here to tell us about ourselves? If so, I think I've heard enough. Can we go now?" I said impatiently. I didn't mean to sound rude but I was an Inuzuka; rebellion flowed through my veins.

Orochimaru chuckled, "Impatient are we? Well Hana-kun, you should know that if you wish to leave the Haimaru brothers out of the games, you are allowed to do so. I doubt that you will though; you will definitely need them. Now, I wish you both a very best of luck and know that I'm hoping to see a fight between you two. That will be all." I clenched my fists and I saw that Itachi was unaffected; I bet he's planning my death already.

We stepped out of the Hokage's office and Itachi closed the door behind him. He pointed to the third door on the right from the Hokage's office, "Go wait in there. You will be given five minutes to speak with your family and friends before we leave."

I nodded and I walked towards the door. Itachi opened the door opposite to mine, the third door on the left, and shut it behind him as he entered. I sighed and opened my door. Two ANBUs arrived and stood on either side of the door. I noticed that two more ANBU were standing guard on Itachi's door as well. I stepped inside and closed the door behind me.

Inside was one of the richest looking rooms I had ever seen. There was a low glass table in the centre, surrounded by plush sofas and chairs which were purple in color. The blood red carpets were deep and thick and the curtains were of the same color as the sofas. Orochimaru must love purple a lot.

I sat down on one of the chairs and sighed. My mother and Kiba would be on their way here very soon. I was suddenly afraid that I was going to cry. I shook my head; I have to stay strong. For my family. I remembered what Orochimaru had said about me leaving the Haimaru brothers out of the games.

"Listen," I said slowly. "Orochimaru said I could leave you guys out of the game. You know you can-"

To my surprise, they all barked in union, cutting me off, and wagged their tails. I got the message. They weren't going to back down; they were going to stick with me till the end. It was annoying since they don't get that I was looking out for them. But at the same time, I was grateful. Besides, the Inuzukas were nothing without their canine partners.

I sighed and smiled at them, "And to think I could convince you guys to go home."

The doors opened and Kiba ran straight into my arms. My mother walked in with Akamaru in her hands and Kuromaru following her.

"You have five minutes." The ANBU told her. My mother nodded in response before the ANBU closed the door behind her.

Kiba was still crying in my arms. I shushed him and pulled away to look at his face. I brushed the tears away with the pad of my thumb, "Come on Kiba. Do you think I'd be happy leaving Konoha knowing you are here crying miserably? You're not a baby anymore; stop crying."

Kiba calmed down a bit. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, "Hana, you can't go."

"You know I have to," I told him. I spoke up before he could argue with me. "Listen, don't skip school and stay out of trouble with your friends. Keep Akamaru with you at all times and don't go into the woods okay? It's dangerous if you go alone. Sora will do the hunting for you."

Sora looked at me quizzically and then gave a whine of protest. He licked my cheek. I knew he wanted to go with me and fight alongside me in the games but my family needed someone here. Besides, he was in no condition to fight. During one of our hunts earlier this year, we had come across a wild lynx and Sora had injured his leg. Though I had healed it as best as I could, he couldn't run with the same speed he used to.

"Sora, you have your injury," I told him as I scratched his ear. "I'm not going to take any risks. I need you to stay here with mom and Kiba. Hunt for them and bring them game. Keep them fed okay?"

Sora whined softly and nuzzled my cheek but he reluctantly agreed and went to stand next to Kuromaru. I then looked at my mother. She stiffened a bit. I guess she knew what was coming.

"You can't leave again." I said firmly.

"I won't," Tsume said softly. She set Akamaru down on the ground. "I couldn't help what-"

"Well you have to help it this time," I cut in. I grabbed her wrist and clutched it tightly. "You can't leave Kiba on his own, even though he has Akamaru, Sora and Kuromaru. I won't be around to keep you both alive anymore. You have to promise me that you will fight through it. No matter what you see on the screen, promise me that you will stay strong!" My voice had risen to a shout. In it are all the anger, fear and sorrow that I felt when she left us alone.

She pulled her hand from my grasp. She glared at me, "I know what I had done! But that doesn't mean I'll do it again."

"You better not," I told her. My anger simmered down and I reached out to pull her in a hug. "I love you. I love both of you. Please take care of yourself. Take care of Kiba. Don't let this family fall apart."

I felt my mother's arms tighten around me. Her shoulders shook and I knew she was fighting the tears in her eyes; for mine and Kiba's sake. I pulled away and she leaned towards me to press her lips to my forehead.

Kiba took my cold hands in his warm ones, "We'll be fine Hana. You're the strongest and smartest person I know. Maybe you'll win."

I couldn't tell Kiba that there were going to be people smarter and stronger than me in the games. There were ninja from Iwa with wicked earth style techniques, people from Kiri who excelled in swordsmanship and weaponry and so on. There will be people like me too; people to weed out before the real fun of the games began.

"Maybe," I replied. I knew that if I told them I was going to die, it would just make matters worse than it already is. Plus, it isn't in my nature to go down without a fight. "If I win, then we'd be rich." I added a bit of humor in my voice hoping to lighten the mood.

"I don't care about the wealth," said Kiba. He hugged me and I immediately returned the hug. "I just want my sister back home." Those words could have made me cry like a baby but I kept telling myself to be strong and soon it sounded like I was reciting a mantra over and over in my head.

Then the ANBU are at the door, signaling that our time was up. I hugged my mom and Kiba one last time and said my goodbyes to Kuromaru, Akamaru and Sora. Sora said his goodbyes to his brothers and cried so much that it broke my heart. The ANBU orders them out and the door closes. I sighed and sank back down on the chair.

Hotaru whined softly and Hiro laid his snout on my lap. I gently stroked his head, "I wish I could convince you guys to stay home too. But at the same time, I need you two." Hotaru licked my cheek, reassuring me that it was okay.

My next visitor was unexpected; Sasuke quietly walked into the room and took a seat on the sofa, opposite to me. He must have finished saying goodbye to his brother. He didn't speak and neither did I. We sat in silence and after a while, he finally spoke up.

"Promise me." He said to me.

"Promise you what?" I asked him as I raised an eyebrow.

He looked into my eyes. His eyes looked determined and demanding but at the same time, they looked like they were pleading, "Promise me that you will avoid my brother in the arena as much as possible. Make sure you don't cross paths."

My eyes widened a bit. He was telling me to stay clear of Itachi and to not confront the Uchiha at all. I guess he was simply protecting his brother. Did he think I was strong enough to take Itachi down or something? No way! Besides, I wasn't planning on confronting Itachi either; that was suicide. Maybe he's looking out for me. But then again, we hardly knew each other; this was the first conversation we were having.

However, the next words he said baffled me.

"And . . . if you two are the last ones in the arena," Sasuke said slowly. "Don't hesitate to finish him off; fight him to the death."

That was unexpected; did he want his brother's death? Or maybe he wanted mine. I didn't know. But it didn't sound like he wanted Itachi to be a victor either; not as in he wanted Itachi to die a gruesome death but like becoming the winner was a curse. I thought the two had a better relationship.

But instead of asking him about what he said, I changed the subject, "You don't even know if I'll live to fight him."

He smirked, "I'm assuming Inuzukas don't go down easily."

"Very true," I said with a nod. "But even so, the odds haven't been in my favor lately." I don't know how many times I've said that to myself today.

"Whatever it may be," said Sasuke. "Don't hold back."

"Why do I feel that you want _me_ to fight Itachi in the end?" I couldn't help but ask.

Sasuke looked away from me; his eyes had faraway look in them, "Think of it as a test . . . for my brother."

I didn't know what kind of test he was talking about and why I needed to be involved. I doubt I'll be able to take Itachi down. And I wondered why Sasuke talked about his brother as if he were no match for me. He was an ANBU and a Chunin and had the Sharingan and I was just a Genin. I don't think it will be much of a match. However, I simply nodded in response.

The ANBU told Sasuke that his time is up. Without another word, Sasuke stood up and walked towards the door. Before he walked out, he turned back to look at me, "I'll make sure that annoying brother of yours is not skipping school. He might become a Genin if he didn't." And with that he left.

I smiled as the doors closed and I thanked Sasuke in my mind. At least there were people in the village looking out for Kiba. That reassured me a bit. I thought that was all the visitors I would be getting today but I had one more.

Ayame entered the room but she wasn't evasive or weepy. She simply came over and hugged me. I slowly returned the hug. She was warm and she smelled of cinnamon and wheat. She pulled away and looked at me with an encouraging look, "Stay strong okay?"

I nodded, "I will. Thank you . . . for coming."

She gave me a small smile and then she opened her palm in front of me. I gasped; in her palm was my father's wolf fang. My arms reached towards my chest and found it missing. I stared at her, "How did you-"

"When you left," she told me. "It slipped off as you left for the stage. I picked it up; thought you'd need it."

As she put the wolf fang necklace over my head and adjusted it, so that it lay on my chest, I reached up to hold her hand tightly. I looked her straight in the eye, "Please . . . keep an eye on Kiba for me?"

I wasn't asking her to feed him, although that would be nice, or to keep him with her at all times but I wanted her to just keep tabs on him and make sure he was okay. Ayame seemed to understand. She smiled kindly at me, "I will; you don't have to worry about him. Oh I almost forgot."

She reached up to the left side of her chest and removed something from her dress; a red colored pin which I hadn't noticed before. She kept her gaze fixed on the pin in her hand, "They let you wear one thing from your village in the arena; to remind you of home. Will you wear this?" I noticed that the pin was the shape of a small red flame; the symbol for the will of fire.

"It's beautiful." I told her. Indeed it was.

"Here, I'll put it on your dress," She said to me. Ayame doesn't wait for an answer. She simply leans in and fixes the fire pin onto my dress. "Never underestimate the will of fire. It burns on forever. You will wear it in the arena won't you? You have to! Promise me!" I could sense the urgency and desperation in her voice. Ayame's voice, which never rose above her normal cheery tone, was now demanding and loud. Somehow, she seemed to be talking to herself rather than to me.

"Yes . . . I promise." I replied. I was making a lot of promises today; first to Sasuke and now to Ayame. I looked at the red pin on my dress. Ayame's gift sparkled when the rays of the sun, which were shining in through the window, hit its surface. Then she's gone . . . just like that.

Since I had no more visitors, the ANBU called me and told me that it was time to leave. My mouth felt so extremely dry and I doubt it was thirst. I saw Itachi coming out of his room and walking ahead with his hands in his pockets. He didn't even look at me once. I walked behind him, with Hotaru and Sora and two ANBU accompanying me from behind.

We walked down a narrow flight of stairs. It was dark and cold and I could have sworn that I smelled death. I shook my head; I had to put bad thoughts out of my head. Participating in the Ninja Games itself is a death sentence for me. Why bother with bad thoughts now?

Once we reached the end of the stairs, Itachi turned left to a long narrow corridor with stone walls and dusty paths. The way was lit by torches on the wall. I immediately followed him, keeping my eyes on the Uchiha symbol on the back of his shirt. Hotaru whined softly and Hiro glanced at his surroundings nervously. I gave them a small nod, telling them everything will be okay.

I turned my focus back to the Uchiha symbol. It looked . . . haunting in the light of the fire from the torches. A bell went off in my head; I remembered that the Uchiha clan specialized in Fire Ninjutsu. That is how they got their clan got their name.

"_The uchiwa fan to stroke and control the flames." _I thought bitterly; I recalled the exact line from the scroll I had read. That was not good news for me.I shook my head and tried to think of something else; like how Itachi was so familiar with this place. Sure, he was an ANBU but I doubt he was allowed here in this part of the Hokage's building . . . unless it was his job.

I then noticed Itachi's head had turned slightly to the right, his eyes examining the wall. Maybe it was his job, before, to escort two tributes every year. Watch their scared movements and listen to their cries and whimpers of fear. I wondered how he felt. Did the Uchiha have some warmth in his heart for those tributes he met each year? Did he feel anything towards the people who previously walked down this corridor but never came back? Were some of them his friends? Had he offered words of comfort to them before they left? He didn't seem like the type to do that but there is more than what meets the eye right?

At the end of the corridor was one door. Itachi pushed it open and stepped inside. Being in the dark for some time, the light blinded my eyes a bit. I shook my head and marched forward. I gasped when I saw the scene in front of me.

**Phew! A cliffie! Well stay tuned for more. ^_^ **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys. My net totally sucks so I'm using my uncle's (he doesn't know though LOL) and well I'm sorry to say but the descriptions suck. I'm not really good at them so I hope it's understandable.**

**Thank you LadyShizu for your kind words. :D**

**Hope you guys like it. Here's the 4****th**** chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (If I did, SasuSaku and my other favorite pairings would be rocking and Kabuto and Karin would be dead) and The Hunger Games (I wish I was Suzanne Collins.)**

**CHAPTER 4**

It was . . . beautiful.

The room was very large and the ceiling was dome shaped with no windows and doors except for the one we came in from. The walls were made up of black mirrors which gave a clear reflection. The ceiling was made up of colorful glass material and they seemed to be making up different pictures; pictures of majestic creatures, each with a different number of tails, from one to ten.

I couldn't help but admire them; there was a two tailed cat with a body that seemed to be made up of blue flames, an interesting pink-colored creature which was a mix of an octopus and a bull, a fierce looking fox with red eyes, orange fur and its tails flaring out in every direction and many more. The final creature, depicted above all the creatures, had ten tails and was simply made of black glass so as to form a silhouette-like image. I had a feeling that the pictures in the glass told stories. But once again, I resisted and didn't allow curiosity to get the best of me.

The floor of the room was much different. It was made up of polished wood and there were symbols drawn on it. A black circle was in the middle and from it, markings spread out, like rays of the sun, in eight directions. ANBU members in their uniform and masks hiding their faces stood at the end of each line of marking. It was a teleportation seal.

I had only read a bit about it from the small library in our village but other than that, all I knew was that the tributes were teleported to the Land of Iron rather than walking for days. It used up a lot of chakra, the source of a ninja's power, but it was the only way for quick travel.

Our Fourth Hokage was known as the 'Yellow Flash of the Hidden Leaf' for his teleportation ninjutsu. He was so fast and could move from one place to another in a blink of an eye. He was a well respected ninja but he had died saving the village from the nine tail fox demon.

My head snapped towards the glass picture of the fox on the ceiling. I counted its tails and my heart almost stopped; it had nine tails. I had a feeling that each creature told a story but I couldn't believe it. Could this be the same demon fox our Fourth had died fighting with? If so, why would it be here, depicted so beautifully when it had caused destruction and killed a great ruler? I stared into the eyes of the fox and they seemed to shine maliciously. I shook my head and looked away.

Itachi, without hesitation walked towards the center of the circle. I looked at the ANBU behind me and he nodded, urging me to follow Itachi. I walked towards the center, with Hiro and Hotaru following after me. The circle was big enough for all of us so we didn't have to be pressed up against each other.

"You will meet Hatake Kakashi the minute you are teleported to the Land of Iron," said one of the ANBU, who was a female, standing by the seal. "He'll meet you by the teleportation seal over there."

"Happy Ninja Games," said the ANBU who had nodded at me. "And may the odds be ever in your favor."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes; I was so tired of hearing that. The ANBU members, standing on the line of marking of the seal, bit their thumb to draw some blood and then did a couple of hand signs. After they finished with their hand signs, they all thrust their palms to the ground and the markings of the seals started to glow.

I felt my body being pulled both upwards and downwards by an unknown force and I felt like the force was going to rip me into two. Itachi didn't seem fazed and had an emotion less expression. Hotaru whined in protest and Hiro kept growling. I squeezed my eyes shut and grabbed onto the closest thing next to me.

I suddenly felt my body turn lighter than air; like my body was made of air itself. For a moment, I felt like my entire existence had been erased. Then suddenly, like I was drowning under water, I felt my body become heavier and heavier and felt a force pulling me downwards. My eyes were squeezed shut all the way. When my body felt whole again, I slowly opened my eyes.

I was still standing on the seal and I saw Hotaru and Hiro by my feet. It was as if we never moved from the spot on the circle. But then, I noticed we weren't in the same room as before. We were in a room made up of solid iron walls, polished wooded floors and a glass ceiling which showed the clear blue sky. There were no windows and had only one door.

I heard someone clear their throat. I turned to my left and saw Itachi raising an eyebrow at me. I realized that I was clutching tightly to his arm, like it was dear life. I felt myself go red hot and mumbled an apology as I let go. I looked around; there was no one in the room. I didn't sense any chakra apart from mine, Hotaru's, Hiro's and Itachi's. I was confused. Didn't that ANBU say Kakashi would meet us here?

Itachi's voice snapped me out of my trance, "Are you going to sit up there all day or are you coming down?"

At first I thought he was talking to me but before I could say anything, I immediately sensed the presence of another chakra in the room, right above us. Hiro and Hotaru had noticed too. A figure jumped down and stood a few meters away from where we were.

He had silver hair spiked up, mostly towards the left side of his head and one single coal black eye. The other was hidden by the Konoha forehead protector and his whole face was hidden by a mask. He wore a green flask jacket with a black shirt underneath and black pants. He was reading a familiar looking orange book. I then saw the title of the book; _Make-out Paradise._

I turned red from embarrassment and from annoyance. That was a book written by one of the legendary Sannin, Jiraiya, who was one of the students of the Third Hokage and also the master of the Fourth Hokage. He was a novelist as well. Jiraiya had mysteriously disappeared during the nine-tails' invasion. Some say he was killed and they was nothing left of him. Therefore his books were kept in our village's library as a memento. I made the mistake of reading it once. That book was . . . very indecent.

He didn't even look at us and simply kept reading his dirty book even when he spoke, "Well done locating me. No need for introductions; I already know who you are. Now zip your lips and follow me." And with that, he started to walk towards the door, while reading his book. What a weird guy. I wonder how a pervert like him, of all people in Konoha, once won the Ninja Games.

But we didn't argue. Itachi walked ahead with his hands in his pockets while Hiro, Hotaru and I walked behind them. We walked through a narrow corridor, similar to the one in Konoha. The corridors were lit with torches and the light from the fire bathed everything in orange.

At the end of the corridor was a door. Kakashi opened it and the light from the other side immediately poured in. I had to shield my eyes from the sudden flash. Without even looking up from his book, Kakashi walked ahead and we followed.

We were now walking through a corridor which had glass walls so everything on the outside could be seen. It was now evening so the final rays of the sun far out in the horizon shone beautifully through the glass. It was amazing; there were many huge buildings and everything was so lush and full of life. The people were going about with their business and the atmosphere seemed so peaceful, like there wasn't a worry in the world.

It was so much bigger and richer than Konoha and I wouldn't mind living here. Hiro and Hotaru wagged their tails as they walked; I guess they liked it here too. I noticed Itachi was looking around too and he seemed fascinated as much as I was.

We reached the end of the corridor and Kakashi opened the door at the end. He walked in calmly and we followed. Inside was a huge long wooden table with so many delicious looking dishes laid out in the most beautiful way possible. It took all my will power to not pounce on the juicy-looking bird in the middle. Hiro and Hotaru barked as they ran ahead. I tried stopping them but they went ahead.

I sighed, "Idiots."

They looked at Kakashi, as if asking for permission to attack the table. Kakashi simply walked over to the table, picked up the whole bird and placed it in front of them without even looking up from his book, "It's all yours."

Hotaru and Hiro licked his mask-covered face and started attacking the bird. Hiro joined him too. I couldn't help but let out a chuckle at their behavior. Kakashi wiped his face and sat down on one of the chairs.

He finally looked at Itachi and me lazily, "Well don't just stand there; let's eat."

I took a seat opposite to Kakashi and Itachi sat next to me. After filling my plate I dug right in. But I didn't eat everything like a pig. My dad taught me table manners so I ate slowly. Itachi didn't gobble everything up either; he spent his childhood with the Hokage and the higher ups so he must be used these things. The food was great; something like this could never be afforded by anyone in Konoha.

As I ate, I noticed Kakashi was still reading and hadn't touched his food at all. I swallowed a mouthful of the mashed potatoes and cleared my throat, "Uh . . . Hatake-san, aren't you going to eat?"

Kakashi looked up again and his visible eye crinkled, indicating he was smiling at me, "Just call me Kakashi and yes I'll eat. I just have to finish off this chapter. I can't take suspense."

What a pervert. But I nodded slowly in response; actually, my mother often told me it was rude to read or do anything else besides eating when at the table. But I guess Kakashi didn't know that. Nevertheless, I simply turned my attention back to my meal.

"Hello Tributes of Konoha!" exclaimed a shrill voice behind us. Itachi and I turned to see the blonde woman from the reaping; the one who had read out the names of the tributes. She sent a flying kiss at Itachi who ignored her. She then cleared her throat and sat down at the table next to Kakashi.

"What are you doing here, Reiko?" Kakashi asked lazily. He didn't even acknowledge her presence and kept reading his book. I also noticed that his plate was now clean. I gaped at him; how in the world did he eat so fast?! I didn't even see him taking off his mask. I shook my head and turned back to the blonde woman, Reiko.

Reiko giggled, "You're still reading that dirty book, I see. I was just going around and meeting the tributes. That guy from Iwa was such a hottie!"

"That boy is eighteen. You are thirty five years old." Kakashi stated, making her flush red. I was taken aback, She didn't seem thirty five; she seemed eighteen. The information freaked me out a bit.

"Shut up." She snapped at the male. She then plucked a grape from the fruit basket and popped it in her mouth. She then turned to me.

"At least you guys have descent manners," she said as she gave me a sickly sweet smile. "Last year's Konoha tributes ate like a couple of savages!"

Last year's tributes were, coincidentally, brother and sister who had, never in a day of their lives, eaten till they were full. Table manners would have been the last thing on their minds if they saw such a delicious feast laid out for them. I couldn't help but feel angered by that comment. So I dabbed my plate with my finger and licked it clean. I then smiled innocently Reiko. She seemed horrified as I wiped my finger on the table cloth. From the corner of my eye, I saw Itachi smirk slightly before resuming his meal.

"Well I should be going," Reiko said as she stood up. She walked towards the door and turned to face us before she walked out. "Happy Ninja Games! And may the odds-"

Kakashi swiftly plucked a grape and threw it straight into her mouth without even looking away from his book. Reiko choked violently and kept hitting her chest to get rid of the grape. She finally managed to swallow and glared at Kakashi.

"Yes, yes," Kakashi said lazily. "We know; the odds will ever be in blah, blah, blah. Thank you. You may leave." Reiko turned on her heel and stormed off. I snickered quietly; that woman got what she deserved. Kakashi then snapped his perverted book shut.

"Well now that was lovely," he said with a sigh; what a pervert. He then stood up and stretched his arms. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed. Both your rooms are down that hall. Itachi your room is on the first door to the left and Hana your room is on the first door to the right." H-e pointed to a hallway to his left.

"You're supposed to help us with matters dealing with the games, aren't you?" I asked. But Kakashi was already gone. I crossed my arms and glared at the spot where he was standing previously.

"We should get some rest," said Itachi. "We'll get him to talk tomorrow." With that, Itachi walked off towards his room. I let out a yawn. Itachi was right; it was late and rest was essential. I turned to Hotaru and Hiro and saw them lying on their backs, exposing their bellies, and a pile of clean bones on the platter where the bird once was. I smirked and gestured for them to follow me.

I opened the first door on the right and walked in. My room was about twice as big as my entire house back in Konoha. Three walls of the room were solid and a pale yellow color, just like my dress. One wall, the one to the left, was made of glass and the lights from the city could easily be seen. A large bed was in the centre of the room with two bedside tables on either side with lamps on top of them. There was a desk and a shelf with many books and scrolls in the corner.

A large flat-screened T.V hung on the wall opposite to the bed. Near the glass wall was a large mattress with many comfy-looking pillows on them Hiro and Hotaru immediately went over and snuggled into the pillows. Soon, they were asleep. There were two were three other doors in the room. I decided to do a bit of exploring. One of the doors was the bathroom, which was huge and had almost everything. The other door led to a balcony.

I stepped out into the cool evening air and placed my hands on the railing. Because of the light from the city, I could hardly see any stars in the sky. Sometimes, I would camp out in the woods with my father and we would try to count the stars. I always cheated but my dad never minded. He would cheat sometimes too. He would tell me stories as we ate rabbit and sipped water. I missed him terribly.

I wondered how my mother and Kiba were. What were they doing right now? Had they eaten the fish and the bread or were they left untouched? Did my mother slip away again? Was Kiba left all alone with no one but Akamaru as a companion? I shook my head; Tsume promised she would stay strong. I was going to put my faith in her. Besides, I had no choice but to do so. It reassured me a bit to know Sora was with them.

I knew Kiba was going to snuggle up to my mother tonight when he slept. He would take Akamaru to bed with him as well. I knew Sora would keep their feet warm if it got cold at night, like he always does and Kuromaru would protect them from any harm. The thought reassured me a bit. But even though they were all physically okay, would they be okay emotionally?

I let out a sigh and decided to go back inside. I sat cross-legged on the bed and grabbed the remote, which was on one of the bedside tables. I switched on the T.V; they were now showing the reaping from today.

First they showed the reaping in Iwa. When the black haired female's name was called out, she literally squealed in glee while others looked at her in envy. A boy with long blonde hair immediately volunteered to participate instead of the short and plump boy with brown hair. I rolled my eyes; people of Iwa salivated for a chance to take part in the games. They were show-offs but they were all deadly killing machines.

In Oto, the names of a girl with long black hair and a boy with spiky black hair and multiple arms were called out. The boy freaked me out; he looked like a spider. A boy with spiky black hair, probably the girl's lover, cheered loudly for her and the girl blew a kiss in his direction. The Oto tributes seemed pretty pleased and they slapped high fives with each other as they stepped onto the stage. People in Oto were pretty much similar to the people in Iwa.

In Suna, the names of the Kazekage's daughter and son were called out. The blonde daughter smiled wickedly as she stepped onto the stage and her brunette brother waved at the crowd as he followed after his sister. The Kazekage had a look of pride in his eyes but the people in the crowd looked relieved. I guess Suna was similar to Konoha; except for the fact that they were richer and some people respected the games.

In Kumo, a girl with dark skin and frizzy red hair was chosen and she smirked as she walked up to the stage. A boy with pale blonde hair who had a lollipop in his mouth walked towards the stage with a bored expression. The crowd went wild and the girl even blew some kisses to the crowd. The boy simply waved. Kumo was also one of the villages who respected the games and honored it, like Oto and Iwa.

In Yuki, two young kids were chosen. I watched as their parents wept miserably. The tributes seemed shaking and were fighting their tears. I pitied them; Yuki was one of the poorest villages in the Water country and the Mizukage paid them no attention. Their village was laden with snow and the only thing they could do for survival was ice fishing.

In Kiri, a fair-skinned girl with long brown hair was chosen. She did not show any emotion. A boy with spiky indigo hair, bluish skin and shark-like teeth was chosen as well. He was grinning maliciously as he stepped onto the stage. I shuddered; people in Kiri were experts on swords. Both tributes looked like they knew twenty ways to kill with a sharp object.

In Taki, a boy with brown hair tied in a high ponytail and a girl with auburn hair was chosen. They seemed pretty shaken. Nevertheless, they stepped onto the stage. They didn't look honored or frightened. They looked . . . bored. I made a mental note to keep an eye on them.

In Kusa, a boy with red hair streaked with black and a girl with curly blonde hair was chosen. The girl looked terrified and the boy looked like he was scared too but he made an effort to hold back his emotions. I didn't think these two were a threat but that didn't mean I wasn't going to keep an eye on them.

In Ame, the female tribute was beautiful with short blue hair and a beautiful paper in her hair. She didn't show any emotion and walked towards the stage slowly. The people shook their heads in sympathy. Some shed tears. I realized she must have been important to the people of Ame. The boy tribute seemed about twelve years old with spiky orange hair and orange eyes. He was very similar to Kiba in both size and demeanor. He shakily walked towards the stage and I saw the female tribute look at him longingly.

Finally, it was Konoha. I saw myself hugging Kiba and walking away as my brother was taken away by the ANBU. I wiped my eyes before any tears could leak out. I watched myself step up onto the stage slowly. Then Sasuke's name was called out and I watched as Itachi volunteered for him. I watched their argument and Itachi walking towards the stage as Sasuke was taken away by the ANBU. My gesture of admiration and the crowd following my lead was also shown. After Itachi and I shook hands, the screen went blank.

I lay down on the soft bed and stared at the ceiling. Tomorrow, Itachi and I will have to talk to Kakashi about how to survive. I couldn't help but wonder how a pervert like him could help us. But then again, he did survive the dreaded games once. I turned to see Hotaru and Hiro snuggled up together on the mattress.

I smiled sadly; I didn't want to put them through this at all. But they were too stubborn. I kept telling myself that they had to be with me because we were Inuzukas. It helped a little in pushing away the guilty feeling.

I thought about all the other tributes. I had to look out for the tributes of Iwa, Oto, Kumo and Suna. That girl from Ame seemed mysterious and very deadly. The boy from Kiri seemed vicious. The other tributes might have something up their sleeves as well. I felt a cold sweat run down my forehead and I reached up to wipe it away. Strong or not, I wasn't going down without a fight.

I couldn't help but think about Itachi as well. No doubt he will be one of the strongest in the arena. He had the Sharingan and he was an ANBU as well. Maybe the others will be too concerned about him and forget me. Maybe I could use that as an advantage. I hated the other villages, mainly Kumo, Oto, Suna and Iwa, for looking down on Konoha like we were trash. I wanted to win, not just for my family but for my village. And even if I went down, I wanted Itachi to win and prove that Konoha may be poor but wasn't weak.

A yawn escaped my lips and I reluctantly dragged myself out of bed to change my clothes. A soft white-colored night gown had been laid out for me so I stripped out of my mother's dress and put it on. I climbed into the covers and snuggled into the pillow. Before I fell into a dreamless sleep, I could have sworn I saw a pair of red eyes watching me.

**Hah! I **_**had**_** to make Kakashi as Haymitch. Don't worry; I'm just using the plot from the book. It will have its twists and turns. Just wait till the games begin. Okay guys, it's time for a vote.**

_Q. Should I add the star-crossed lovers' thing or should I add a bit of a surprise twist to it? (Either way, ItaHana will be there. Don't worry ^^)_

**Vote yes or no on my poll or simply tell me your opinion as a feedback for this chapter.**

**I'll try updating soon. Stay tuned!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm so sorry! I suck; I know. My update timing is really crappy. I hope you haven't forgotten this fanfic though LOL. I promise to update sooner from now on. **

**Credits go to the anime and for the description of Kakashi's ninja dogs. **

**This chapter is dedicated to my friend Dolly-sama (Co-writer of Summer Breeze. Do review it if you haven't okay? It's on my profile) since it's his birthday today! Happy birthday Yadol (there, I called you Yadol; ya happy?) and I hope you have a grand one! ****Do read his fanfic 'River Never Comes Back' and review; he'll be so happy! Pretty please okay?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (If I did, SasuSaku and my other favorite pairings would be rocking and Kabuto and Karin would be dead) and The Hunger Games (I wish I was Suzanne Collins.)**

**CHAPTER 5**

I opened my eyes and I was immediately blinded by the light of the sun pouring in through the large glass windows. I groaned as I sat up and massaged my temples. I looked at my surrounding as realized I wasn't back home and I was here in the Land of Iron. Yesterday's reaping and my goodbyes to my family and friends seemed like a dream. A part of me was disappointed and the other part of me chided that I was a fool for believing in false hope.

I climbed out of bed and stretched my arms. Hotaru and Hiro were gone so I'm assuming they went to eat something. I slipped out of the nightgown and folded it neatly before heading for the bathroom. The shower itself had so many buttons, each performing a specific task to make sure that showering was like utopia (I don't see the point in it though), I felt like it would take a life time figuring out which button does what.

Finally, after pressing many false buttons and surprises in the shower, I managed to clean myself thoroughly and I felt cleaner than ever. I was able to dry my hair or body without a towel. All I had to do was place my hand on a panel and a current ran through my body, increasing my body heat so that the water dried off and my hair untangled itself and fell down my shoulders in a glossy curtain.

After I was done, I put on one of the soft and thick bathrobes and stepped outside. I noticed that there was an outfit for me to wear sitting on the table, neatly folded. I held it up and saw that it was a simple green track suit and a white t-shirt. Everything was there; hair ties undergarments and socks.

I put on the outfit that was laid out for me and fixed my now silky hair in a ponytail. I then remembered my fire pin; the one Ayame had given me. My mother's dress was folded neatly and it sat on the table, next to where my outfit was. I pulled out the pin from the dress and pinned it on the left side of my t-shirt. After tying my forehead protector around my forehead, I then made my bed and headed out of the room.

Kakashi and Itachi were already sitting at the table. Itachi was wearing a track suit like mine but his was dark blue in color and he had his headband around his forehead. Kakashi was wearing a white t-shirt and black track pants with his black jacket wrapped around his waist. He had his mask on and his forehead protector covering his left eye. He looked up at me lazily and gave me a small wave.

Hotaru and Hiro, who were eating something out of a bowl, barked at me in greeting and wagged their tails happily. I scratched their ears and went towards the table.

I simply nodded and sat down at the table, next to Itachi. He was silently nibbling on a piece of toast and he simply gave me a small nod in greeting. I sat down and started to help myself to some food and I couldn't help but notice Kakashi was reading the same book he was yesterday.

"I thought he finished that book." I muttered.

"Well he seems to enjoy the contents of that book very much." Itachi replied quietly with a small shrug.

I sighed and began to help myself to breakfast. It was good; I ate slices of buttered toast, fried eggs and something they called pancakes, which was coated in sweet syrup, with lukewarm milk. After I swallowed a mouthful of pancake and syrup, I looked at Kakashi, who was chuckling as he read his dirty books. I looked at Itachi and he gave me a small nod. I cleared my throat before I spoke.

"Kakashi," I started to say. "About our training . . ."

"Hmm?" He said as he looked up reluctantly from his book.

"You are supposed to be our advisor," Itachi said smoothly. "You have survived the dreaded games and you are supposed to train us and give us advice on survival."

"So?" Kakashi said as he returned to reading his book.

I raised an eyebrow, "So you are supposed to do just what Itachi said."

"Oh what?" said Kakashi as he closed his book and set it on the table. "Give you advice on survival? Well let's see . . . hmm . . . embrace the probability of you dying a gruesome and pathetic death out there in the arena!"

He started to laugh at his own words and I just stared at him in disbelief. This guy was such a jerk! He wiped away a tear and reached for his book again. Then, something unexpected happened; Itachi snatched away the book in the blink of an eye and held it away from Kakashi while gripping the grey-haired man's wrist with the other hand.

"That would have been funny if we were in the mood for jokes." Itachi hissed as he glared at Kakashi. In my opinion, if looks could kill, Kakashi would be dead by now.

Kakashi disappeared with a poof and so did the book from Itachi's hold and reappeared behind us, a few feet away. He made 'tsk, tsk' noises as he flipped a page in his book, "Itachi, didn't anyone tell you it's rude to attack the elderly and take what's not yours?"

My instincts kicked in and I guess the Haimaru brothers felt it too because they growled and crouched low, ready to attack. I grabbed my fork from the table and threw it this way. Kakashi jumped out of the way without even looking up from the book and Hotaru and Hiro pounced forward. The two of them and Kakashi were engaged in some taijustu battle and I used that time to sneak up behind him and hold my table knife to his throat. At the same time, Itachi had grabbed hold of one of Kakashi's arms and Hiro had his other arm in his mouth. Hotaru snarled at Kakashi from in front.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow as he glanced at me and Itachi, "What's this? Did I actually get a pair of real fighters this year?" I pressed the table knife further onto his throat. The Haimaru brothers growled lowly as they glared at Kakashi.

"Hana." Itachi said as he looked at me. I got the message; Kakashi was now going to talk. I slowly pulled away from my hold on his neck and placed the knife back on the table. Itachi and Hiro did the same and I scratched Hotaru's ear, signaling him to calm down.

Kakashi crossed his arms and looked back and forth between me and Itachi. He turned to look at Hiro and Hotaru and they simply growled at him. Kakashi raised his eyebrow, "Well both of you are fast and have good instincts, I'll give you that. But just how good are you?"

"Why don't you put us to the test?" I challenged. My mind screamed not to get on the bad side of the only one who may be of help to me in the arena but what can I do? I'm an Inuzuka. Rebellion flowed through my veins.

"I'm planning on doing that," Kakashi replied coolly. He reached into his pant pocket and pulled out one silver bell and gave it a little jingle. "I'm going to give you the bell test. One of you, either Hana and the Haimaru twins or Itachi, has to get the bell from me before lunch time and the loser gets no food and gets tied to the chair while we eat."

"No fair." I muttered. Hotaru whined in protest.

"It is completely fair and besides, you wanted this didn't you?" Kakashi replied. I sent him a small glare.

"So you are only one man?" Itachi asked.

"I didn't say that," Kakashi said with a chuckle. "I won't use my own techniques though. I have both techniques you two have."

"Which are?" I prompted.

Kakashi reached up and lifted his Konoha headband, revealing his left eye. It had a long scar running down from it but the most shocking thing was that his left eye was blood red with three comatose.

"Is that . . .?" I started to say.

"So it's true," said Itachi. "You do possess the Sharingan despite you not being an Uchiha."

"Yes," said Kakashi. "It's a very long and sad story but whatever it may be, I will be equal to Itachi in combat since both of us have the Sharingan. As for Hana and her partners . . ."

I watched him carefully as he used one of the table knives to draw blood from his thumb. He then did a couple of hand signs and placed his palm on the floor, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu."

With a poof, a small brown pug, with brown fur and dark brown snout and ears, appeared dressed in ninja gear; a Konoha forehead protector around his head, a bandage on the front of his right leg and a dark blue vest with the heno-heno-moheji seal at the back. Hiro immediately jumped on it and began to sniff it all over.

"Hey stop that; you're invading my privacy!" said the pug. Even Itachi was taken aback and his eyes widened. Hiro yelped and jumped away. Hotaru barked at the small pug.

I shakily pointed to the pug, "Did that thing just talk?"

The pug looked at me with an annoyed expression, "'That thing' has a name and it's Pakkun."

Kakashi chuckled, "Now, now, be nice Pakkun-chan."

"Shut up Kakashi." Pakkun said flatly.

Kakashi shook his head, "That's not nice!"

"Why'd you summon me here?" Pakkun asked with a sigh.

Kakashi gestured to me and Itachi, "These are the Konoha tributes of this year's Ninja Games. I need your help; I'm putting them to the bell test."

Pakkun looked amused, "The bell test? You haven't put anyone to the bell test for years. Are they that good?"

Kakashi shrugged, "They are good but I want to see just how good enough. So guys, Pakkun and the others will be my ninja companions. "

"Others?" I asked.

Pakkun gave a gruff chuckle, "You'll see once the test has begun. Now shall we head for the training arena?"

"You seem excited." Kakashi noted.

Pakkun licked his lips, "It's been a long time since I've been summoned for a challenge. I'm totally up for it." Somehow those words felt like they weren't comfort for me.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xx

The training area was huge. The floor was covered with grass and dirt and as far as I could see, there were trees. It was an entire forest in front of me. The ceiling was a clear blue sky with some lazy clouds floating about but I knew better; it was probably just what they call a projection.

Kakashi walked in front of us with his hands in his pockets. Pakkun trotted lazily at his side. Itachi, Hotaru, Hiro and I walked behind them. I looked around and saw that there was no one around. I wonder where the other tributes where.

"The tributes from each village get separate training fields," said Kakashi, as if he read my mind. "That way, disputes before the games can be avoided. One time, the tributes from Taki and Kumo got into a huge fit and one of the Taki tributes was injured. He died from the beginning of the games; it wasn't fair but he had asked for it.

These training fields have privacy from the public eyes. Some tributes get freaked when they know people are watching so here it is completely private. There is another field where all the tributes can train together and that field is open to public viewing. That way, the tributes can train together and not cause trouble since people are watching."

I rolled my eyes, "That makes no sense; they want to keep tributes together knowing they will fight."

Kakashi chuckled, "Well that is what everyone wants; a bloodbath. A bloodbath before the games is like a taste of what the people were going to see once the games actually began. You could call it a spoiler."

"So we will be seeing the other tributes eventually?" Itachi said as he raised an eyebrow.

Kakashi nodded, "We will be visiting the other training area after lunch. It's much larger and much better than this one but I must say it will be noisy because of the others. I won't be able to read Make-out Paradise properly." He gave a deep sigh and shook his head.

"How many times did you read hat book?" I heard Itachi mutter under his breath. I couldn't agree more.

"Twenty one," he replied. "It is very interesting. I've read Make-out Violence and Make-out Tactics but the first book is the best. You should read it too Itachi. You are what? Seventeen? It's underage but you're still close to eighteen."

"No thanks." Itachi said flatly.

Kakashi shrugged, "Oh well; you're missing out on pure literature."

"It's just porn." I stated.

"Only idiots take it that way," Kakashi said to me. I glared at him. "It is about desire, passion, sin and seduction. It is about the fiery attractions between a man and woman." He looked way to modest saying that.

"Will you all stop blabbering and move faster?" Pakkun grumbled. He was already several feet ahead of us. He sat next to three straw dolls, with a bull's eye taped on the chest for practicing shuriken and kunai throws, frowning at us. "We still haven't begun training."

Kakashi sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets, "Patience is a virtue."

Pakkun snorted and trotted behind one of the straw dolls and dragged three weapon pouches. He tossed them in front of Kakashi. Kakashi then picked them up and handed one each to me and Itachi.

"Now remember," said Kakashi as he strapped one of the pouches around his waist. "You have to come at me with the intent to kill or you won't be able to get me."

I checked my weapons pouch; there were shuriken, kunai, some wire string and smoke bombs. I looked around the training field; Kakashi and Pakkun said there would be more . . .

"I know Hana," said Kakashi. His visible eye crinkled, indicating he was smiling at me. He then pulled out a kunai and sliced his thumb. He did some hand signs and placed it on the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu."

With a poof of smoke, seven other ninja dogs, dressed in ninja gear, appeared and they were of different sizes and color. Hotaru and Hiro growled but I told them to calm down.

"These are my ninja dogs," said Kakashi. "Their names are Bull, Guruko, Bisuke, Shiba, Urushi, Akino and Uhei." He pointed out each dog as he said their name.

Bull was a large, largest in pack Kakashi had summoned, intimidating black bulldog wearing a spiked collar. He also wore a Konoha forehead protector on his left front leg.

Guruko had tan fur, a white snout, long ears that have a dark brown color and whisker marks similar to one of Kiba's friends, Uzumaki Naruto, back in Konoha. He wore a Konoha forehead protector on his forehead.

Bisuke had tan-colored fur with brown highlights on his long ears and legs with a kanji for "shinobi" imprinted on his head and dark rings around his eyes. He wore a Konoha forehead protector around his neck.

Shiba had light grey fur with a white underside and a black crest on his head. His eyes slightly resembled those of the male tribute from Kiri and wore a Konoha forehead protector around his neck and bandages on his front legs.

Urushi had white and light-brown fur, along with long spiky tufts of hair on his head. His eyes were weird; they seemed permanently angry. He wore a Konoha forehead protector around his neck.

Akino had tan fur with one white strip starting from the top of his head and going down his muzzle. He wore sunglasses and a Konoha forehead protector around his neck.

Uhei was reddish-brown in color with a white underside and snout. He wore a Konoha forehead protector around his neck and he also sports bandages around his neck, head and left, front paw.

All the ninja dogs Kakashi had summoned were wearing the same uniform as Pakkun; a blue vest that had the heno-heno-moheji symbol at the back.

"Hey guys." Pakkun said as he jumped up to sit on Bull's head. I guess Bull and Pakkun were pretty good buddies is that big bulldog let Pakkun sit on top of his head.

"Do these mutts talk too?" Itachi muttered.

"Who are you calling mutts?" Guruko complained.

"Yup," I said as I crossed my arms. "That confirms it."

"Oi cut it out!" Bisuke complained as Hotaru sniffed it all over.

"Now," said Kakashi. He lifted his headband and revealed his right eye. A long, thin scar ran down it but the unusual thing about it was that his right eye was red with three comatose; the Sharingan.

"You're serious about this test aren't you?" Shiba said as he stared at his master.

"Now, to go over the rules again," said Kakashi as he pulled out the bell again and gave it a jingle. "You have till lunch time to steal the bell from me; Hana and her ninja companions and Itachi. You have until lunchtime." He pointed behind him at a small timer in front of one of the straw dolls. He then tied the bell to the strap of his weapons pouch.

"Come at me with all you've got," said Kakashi. "I won't hold back and you shouldn't too. The one who succeeds to take the bell will eat with me and the other will be tied to the chair and has to watch us eat. Fair enough?"

"Not really," I said. I knew the advantage would be on me since I had my ninja dogs. But on the other hand, Itachi had no partners. "Itachi needs partners too." I was probably asking for my own defeat. But I liked to play a fair game.

"That's not how it's going to be in the arena now, is it?" said Kakashi. He turned to Itachi. "Let's just see how sharp you are on your own. Good luck to both of you."

"Ready?" Kakashi said to us. His ninja dogs had made a circular formation in front of him. I strapped on my weapons pouch and Itachi did the same. He looked at me and nodded. I got the message; may the best ninja win.

Chunin or not, I wasn't going to go down without a fight. Hotaru and Hiro crouched down, ready to pounce. I saw Itachi pull out a kunai from the corner of my eye. I did the same and turned my attention to Kakashi who was simply standing there with his eyes closed.

"Start!" he called out. And just like that, he and all his ninja dogs had disappeared, leaving a small cloud of dust behind.

**Jutsu(s) in this chapter:**

**-Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Summoning Jutsu**

**And that's that. You guys can expect a fight scene in the next chapter. Although I warn you; I suck at fight scenes so Sumimasen in advanced. Read and Review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**-Dodges tomatoes thrown my way- WAIT! I CAN EXPLAIN!**

**So I became the Literary Captain of the year 2013 in my school (My last year in DTS; it's my senior year!) and boy have I been busy with the tests, quizzes, essay-writing competitions, lunch with my kawaii students (they call me Sakura-senpai! ^_^), basketball practices, disaster management stuff (First Aid team baby!), teaching the new scouts (hey I'm the troop leader and I'm like a second teacher' Te bane!) and so on. Gomen! **

**My net is much better but the only problem is finding time for my fanfics. We have this thing called board exams this year and we don't do home exams anymore. No way, this is a NATIONAL thing. And it sucks -_-**

**But anyway, here is the 6****th**** chapter. I will do my best to update ASAP. I promise! –Nice guy pose- **

**Anyone here read the Rock Lee's springtime of Youth manga? :D**

**CHAPTER 6**

Right after Kakashi had disappeared, Itachi retreated himself into the forest. I wasn't going to follow him. I made the tiger hand seal and focused on my chakra, "Shikyaku no Jutsu."

I could feel my senses sharpen as my own chakra enveloped my body. This was one of the basic Inuzuka Clan Jutsu: the Shikyaku no Jutsu. It granted me more animal-like speed, strength and sharper fighting instincts and reflexes.

I sniffed the air for Kakashi's or Pakkun's scent. I wasn't able to get the scent of all the other ninja dogs but I knew if I could track Pakkun, the others would definitely be with him. I checked all around; left, right, above and behind.

The only place left was . . .

I immediately sensed someone below me, under the earth and I jumped into the air, right in time, to see two hands reached out, out of the ground, right on the spot where I had been standing. If I was standing there for another second I would have been caught.

"Very good Hana," Kakashi said with a smile as I landed a few feet away from him. "You have very sharp instincts; I expect nothing less from an Inuzuka."

"Katon: Gokyakyu no Jutsu!" A voice called out. Kakashi jumped out of the way, just in time to dodge a giant fire ball, from Itachi, coming his way. Kakashi had jumped into the air; now's my chance.

"Hiro!" I yelled. Hiro understood and pounced into the air. Kakashi won't be able to move very well when he was in the air so if Hiro was quick enough, he would be able to snatch the bell strapped to Kakashi's weapon's pouch.

I watched as Itachi came out into the open. He made some hand seals, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu."

A black crow appeared with a poof and flew at full speed toward Kakashi. If that crow got to Kakashi first, it could get the bell before Hiro did. I was planning to pull out a kunai and throw it at the black bird but I didn't have to.

Kakashi did what I had intended to do; he threw a kunai at the crow which disappeared with a poof. He then, somehow, froze Hiro's movements and my companion came crashing down to the ground. I caught him just in time. Hiro's eyes were wide and glassy like he was seeing something horrible. I realized immediately; Genjutsu.

Kakashi had used a Genjutsu on Hiro with his Sharingan. I had to get away from the field and break Hiro free from the Genjutsu. Itachi threw his shuriken at Kakashi who had landed on the ground but Kakashi disappeared again.

I looked at Hotaru and nodded. I carried Hiro and using my new speed from my Shikyaku no Jutsu, we headed for the forest. We didn't go too far in nor did we stay too close. We stayed close enough to see the ground just in case Kakashi came around with his guard down. It was unlikely but still.

"Tsuiga no Jutsu!" I heard Pakkun's voice yell. I turned my head to see Kakashi's ninja dogs emerge out of the ground, like Kakashi had earlier, and bite onto Itachi, restricting him of any movement. But Itachi's body disappeared with a poof of smoke and in its place was a log.

Kawarimi no Jutsu; we were taught that at the academy. It was very useful for quick getaways and I have to say even I'm not as fast as Itachi. I didn't even see the guy weave hand signs. I envied him for that.

I pressed my palm onto Hiro's ribcage and channeled my chakra. He got up with a jolt and looked around with surprise.

I couldn't help but chuckle, "Relax buddy; we're safe."

Hiro whined and licked my cheek. I grinned at him and then looked at the sky. The sun would be atop our heads in two hours or less, signaling the time for noon. If I didn't hurry, time would run out and either both Itachi and I won't have lunch or he will have the bell and enjoy lunch while we starved.

The training ground was much bigger than I thought. I could even see wild life around; rabbits, squirrels, birds and insects of all types. It was like the woods back home. Home; the place seemed almost extinct now . . .

No! I have to focus! I can't let my mind wander.

I stood up and sniffed the air. Kakashi's scent was definitely there but there was one problem; it was scattered. Somehow, Kakashi was scattering his scent to throw me and the Haimaru twins off the trail; probably used a shadow clone. Maybe if I focused hard enough, I can find where the original is and track him down.

I closed my eyes and sniffed the air again, focusing on each and every scent that entered my nose. After a few moments, I managed to get about three locations from eight places in the whole ground where the original Kakashi might be; west, north-west and south-east.

"Okay guys," I said as I turned to Hiro and Hotaru. "We have to split up. Hiro, you go north-west and Hotaru, you take south-east. I'll head west."

Hotaru and Hiro gave a bark in response and headed to the direction I assigned them to. After they were gone, I headed west and made sure my eyes, ears and nose was alert. I could sense more life force here; animals, plants and insects. I couldn't sense any humans but Kakashi's scent was still around. The more I headed westward, the stronger the scent became. I masked my chakra, just in case.

I hid behind a couple of bushes and grinned when I saw a familiar figure. Kakashi was just standing there reading his dirty book in the clearing. I focused on how to snatch the bell, which was shining in the light, from Kakashi.

Somehow, even with the Haimaru twins on my side, I felt like I wasn't going to get the bell from him no matter how hard I tried because I worked in combo moves with my ninja dogs and Kakashi did the same, only his was more advanced and better. If I used the Haimaru twins as distraction and went after the bell, Kakashi was armed with his Sharingan which is said to have copied over a thousand Jutsus. No telling what he could do; I was no match for that alone. And if we attacked as a team, his ninja dogs can create a diversion while Kakashi could escape in peace.

But then again, when I think about it, Itachi didn't have much of a chance either. It's not just because he didn't have ninja dogs to work with, but also because Kakashi's Sharingan is far more advanced and stronger than his own. Uchiha or not, Itachi didn't have much of a chance with Kakashi; Kakashi was a Jonin after all. On top of all that, he didn't have much time either.

I wondered why Kakashi was doing this stupid test; neither me, along with the Haimaru twins, and Itachi didn't have much of a chance nor did we have time. He could just check our skills by training with us. Sure, this was a form of training but somehow I felt like there was a meaning behind him giving this bell test. Like the key to getting the bell was in the test itself. If only I knew what it was . . .

Kakashi probably sensed me because he ran off. I cursed and I was about to run after him when something shiny caught my eye. The bell lay neglected and forgotten on the ground; Kakashi had dropped it.

I knew it could be a trap. I made sure no one was around, Kakashi or Itachi, and slowly emerged from my hiding. I aimed a kunai and the bell, to check if there were no traps. I hadn't even noticed the chakra opposite to where I was standing until the person threw a kunai at the bell too.

Both our kunais clashed and fell on top of the bell. As I suspected, it was a trap. The bell disappeared with a poof and a net sprang to life from below me. It scooped me off of my feet and I was tangled in it in a matter of seconds. However, I wasn't alone.

"How annoying; this net's bigger than I thought." Itachi muttered. I did my best to suppress the blush creping onto my cheeks after realizing how close we were. We were tangled in the net, back to back, and if either he or I turned our head, our cheeks would meet.

"I didn't sense you there until after I threw the kunai." Itachi told me.

I rolled my eyes, "The same goes for you."

We struggled in the net for a while but both of us were restricted of much movement and the fact that we were really, _really_ close didn't help.

"This net is restricting chakra usage." I cursed. Damn Kakashi!

"As annoying as it is," said Itachi. "I think I'm going to lose this bell test. You have an advantage over me and so does Kakashi."

"No it's me who is losing," I muttered. "Stupid bell test; I don't see any point to it. Even though I have an advantage over you, having the Haimaru twins, I still won't be able to defeat Kakashi. I'm . . . outnumbered you could say."

It was indeed pointless. Still, I felt like there was more to the bell test and what more I felt the answer was right under my sensitive nose. And then it hit me like a ton of bricks . . .

"Teamwork."Itachi and I said at the same time as we turned to each other. Our cheeks were touching and our lips were inches apart. I cleared my throat and looked away.

"It makes sense," I told him. "We have to work together. But that's still pointless; I mean how that training for the arena is? We'll be on our own then."

Itachi sighed, "Well whatever it may be, for this test we have to use teamwork."

I nodded, "Let's get out of this fix first."

"Hana, can you reach my weapons pouch?" he asked. I gave a nod and wiggled my hand through the mess and pulled out a kunai from Itachi's pouch. I then started to cut the net. Soon, both of us were free and we landed with a soft thud on the ground. Well, Itachi landed as gracefully as a cat and I . . . ended up on my rear.

He gave me an amused smirk, "Clumsy as ever." He held out a hand to me.

I glared at him and slapped his hand away, "Shut up. I picked myself up and dusted off the dirt from my tracksuit.

"Where are your ninja dogs?" Itachi asked me.

"Hiro headed north-west," I said. "And Hotaru went south-east."

"Kakashi probably used clones to throw you off his scent," Itachi said as he looked at the sky. "We don't have much time. The real one was here minutes ago before we ended up in the trap. I have a plan to get him but we're going to need your ninja dogs. We need to get to them."

I smirked, "Don't worry about them. Hiro and Hotaru are very smart; they'll understand the plan once it's put into action; we're Inuzukas after all. And you're not the captain here so you have to listen to what _my _plan is too."

Itachi smirked and nodded, "Fair enough."

Just then, I caught two very familiar scents heading our way. Itachi probably sensed them too because he said, "Look whose here."

In a blur of grey, Hiro and Hotaru, who emerged from the bushes, pounced on Itachi and pinned him down. But seconds later, Itachi disappeared with a poof and in his place was a log. Hotaru growled and Hiro slashed the log.

Itachi appeared on the branch of the tree behind me. He jumped down gracefully, "Tell your ninja dogs to behave."

Hiro looked at me with a confused look. I held up my hands, "We're on the same team now."

Hotaru tilted his head in confusion. Itachi walked over, "We don't have time; we better discuss the plan."

For the next fifteen minutes or so, we laid out a strategy on how to snatch the bell and complete the test.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"So approximately we have an hour or less before noon." Itachi said as he stood up from the ground.

"This plan better work." I muttered. It would have taken ten minutes to get everything ready but we argued about whose plan would be more effective. In the end, we simply combined the two.

"It has to," Itachi said as he rolled his eyes. "You're the one who hijacked my plan."

"Oh don't start." I said as I stood up and pulled out a kunai.

"Whatever," said Itachi. "We need to track down the real Kakashi."

"Leave that to me." I said. I sniffed the air and focused on finding the one scent that belonged to. I couldn't smell Kakashi's ninja dogs; they might be hiding underground.

I went back to finding Kakashi. He had used shadow clones to scatter his scent. Before, I had pinpointed three locations from eight where I was sure Kakashi was at because I couldn't tell from the three I had pinpointed whether if it was the real Kakashi or not. I was confused.

But now I won't pinpoint any more locations and split up. I will find the real Kakashi himself and track him down. I concentrated my chakra to my nose and sniffed the air again. The scents were stronger and sharper now. Suddenly, I caught the scent I was looking for.

"He's about three kilometers east," I told Itachi. "He's nearby the main grounds but not close enough."

Itachi did some had seals and placed his hand on the ground, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu."

Three black crows appeared and flew into the sky. They dispersed into different directions and soon they were out of sight.

"They'll keep look out from the sky," Itachi said to me. He pulled out a kunai. "I'm taking another route to the main grounds. I'll set traps there. Lead him towards the main grounds and not anywhere else."

"See ya there. "I said with a two fingered salute.

"Disperse." said Itachi.

The Haimaru twins gave a bark before they followed me towards the east. I was confident that this was the real Kakashi. I picked up speed and so did my ninja dogs. Kakashi was definitely up ahead.

I wonder if Itachi would, in the end, take the bell and declare himself winner. Maybe he was using me. I know looks can be deceiving but Itachi did not seem like the type to do something like that. But whatever it may be, I won't do that; I don't play dirty unless it's necessary.

When I saw him through some bushes, I smirked. It was now or never.

"Now!" I yelled. Together, the Haimaru twins and I jumped out of hiding, ready to attack Kakashi. Kakashi had already sensed us so he jumped out of the way to dodge Hiro's claws, threw Hotaru over his head and deflected my kunai attack with his own.

The fact that he didn't take the attack and disappear with a poof of smoke indicated that this was the real Kakashi and not a shadow clone.

Our kunais met with a metallic '_ting_.' Kakashi chuckled, "I was wondering when you were going to come out of hiding."

"Really now?" I taunted. "Well, now that I'm out why don't you stop running away and fight me?!"

I threw a fury of kicks and jabs but he deflected easily. It was simply a battle of Taijutsu and I wasn't so bad at it. I'm actually pretty good at Taijutsu. But Kakashi was better. However, I didn't mind; I was slowly backing him towards the training ground. If I kept this up, Kakashi would fall right into the trap that lay waiting for him. I hope Itachi's done by now . . .

Kakashi was too busy focusing on me. And that was just fine; I smirked when I saw the metal wire ahead. All I had to do was back Kakashi into it. The plan was a success. Kakashi's foot triggered the metal wire which was almost invisible. His eyes widened when he realized the trap.

I jumped out of the way just in time for the two large logs to emerge from the woods and towards Kakashi. Kakashi jumped out of the way as well but he could only do so by jumping in the air. Itachi was behind him in a flash. He made hand seals and called out, "Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!"

At the same time, I heard Pakkun's voice, "Ninken Ninpo: Sajin no Mai!"

I was only able to see Kakashi's ninja dogs jump over my head and land in front of me and Pakkun's evil doggish smirk before they started to dig up the earth and create a cloud of dust.

I covered my nose and mouth; this was not good. We could barely see anything in the dust cloud. We may end up attacking each other. Again, that feeling of worry washed over me, thinking Itachi would betray the truce. But I pushed it away and tried to focus on the situation.

I heard Pakkun's voice again, "Ninken Ninpo: Ryoken Bunshin!"

Suddenly, I was surrounded by hundreds of Pakkuns. They were clones. Pakkun laughed gruffly, "Well Hana, let's see how your Inuzuka instincts can handle this."

I crouched low, ready to attack but Pakkuns clones moved faster. Before I could even blink, they were attacking me with jabs and punches. And I was helpless because the dust storm was disturbing and irritating my sense of sight and smell.

This way, both Itachi and I didn't have a chance. I could hear the sound of clashing metal; Itachi was up against Kakashi. I need to think fast. I then remembered that Hiro and Hotaru were hiding in the forest, just in case we needed back up.

I put two fingers in my mouth and blew a sharp whistle. I heard two barks and then suddenly, the sound of the ground being drilled filled the air. The dust slowly started to clear but just a little. I could see silhouettes and I could vaguely smell Kakashi's and Pakkun's scent along with Itachi's. Hiro and Hotaru were ahead, in front of me, using our special move; they were rotating in a buzz-saw shaped movement rapidly.

Slowly the dust cleared and I could see everything around me clearly. I ducked just in time for me to see Pakkun jumping over my head, his paw held out in a jab. I swiftly kicked him and with a small whine, he landed a few feet ahead of me.

Itachi's limbs were immobilized again by Kakashi's other Ninken and Kakashi stood in front of him with his hands in his pocket. He turned towards me, observing the cleared dust storm. Itachi looked at me and yelled, "Hana, now!"

I understood immediately and gave a small nod. Kakashi pulled out a kunai and braced himself. Itachi disappeared with a puff of smoke. Hotaru and Hiro came up to either side of me.

"Let's go!" I said with a smirk. They gave a curt bark and the three of us jumped into the air.

"GATENGA!" I yelled. The three of us used our chakra and our bodies immediately became rotating buzz saws. This was the Haimaru brothers (including Sora) and my special move; Gatenga. We came up with it own our own after my mother taught us the Inuzuka clan technique Gatsuga. One could say this was the modified version of Gatsuga.

In this Jutsu, the user and their Ninken roll at a ferocious speed in a buzz saw shape and deliver many beast-like attacks. I never got the chance to use it in real battle and I often worried that it wouldn't work. I have been proved wrong.

Hiro went for Kakashi's Ninken while Hotaru and I aimed head on for Kakashi. As I predicted, Kakashi jumped high into the air again. I smirked. Suddenly, a hoard of crows surrounded Kakashi, blocking his line of vision.

I changed directions and so did Hotaru. This time we aimed for the sky, towards Kakashi. Kakashi had nowhere to escape unless he used teleportation ninjutsu or a substitution. He used a substitution because right before Hiro and I reached him, he disappeared with a poof of smoke.

Where he would retreat I didn't know but what I did know was that our plan was working. Now there was only Itachi's part left to be done.

"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!" Right on queue Kakashi, landed at the edge of the forest and Itachi's fireball shower started immediately. Kakashi's eyes widened and cursed a bit too loudly as he dodged it. He was fast; but not fast enough.

I walked over to Itachi who had a small smirk playing on his lips. Hotaru gave a bark and started to clean himself up. I noticed that Hiro was still wrestling with Kakashi's other Ninken. I looked at Hotaru and he met me gaze. Hotaru gave a gruff bark and went to help Hiro out.

Kakashi stood a few feet in front of us. He was now covered in dust and I could tell his breathing was a bit uneven. His eyes crinkled; he was smiling at us, "Well now what is this? You two are a team now."

"That's the point of this test," I told him. "Teamwork right?"

Kakashi's eyes widened a bit. He then sighed, "So you figured it out. But can you get the bells in time?"

"Yes." Itachi replied. Kakashi raised an eyebrow waiting for an explanation. A crow flew down and landed on Itachi's shoulder. In its beak was a familiar shiny object.

Kakashi's eyes widened again, "How . . .?" He glanced down at his weapon's pouch and back at us.

The crow dropped the bell land I caught it in my palm. I held it up, "It was when Itachi used his crows." The crow gave a caw and disappeared with a poof.

"We knew you had many tricks up your sleeve," I told him. "It was no use no matter how we attacked since you had the Sharingan. With our teamwork, one of us would be a distraction while the other snatched the bell."

"Your Sharingan would be able to predict and counter every attack we threw at you," said Itachi. "I summoned my crows to block your line of vision and I had one of the crows quietly take the bells."

Kakashi stared back and forth between us. We stared back at him. Suddenly Pakkun's voice called out, "Time's up! It's noon!"

Kakashi's covered his Sharingan with his head band and his lone black eye crinkled, "Congratulations; you passed!"

We won. We won the bell test. Kakashi's Ninken disappeared leaving Hiro and Hotaru wrestling with themselves. Pakkun trotted over lazily and gave us a doggish smirk, "You're the first to do so with the actual meaning of the test itself."

"What do you mean?" I said as I raised an eyebrow.

"The real purpose of the bell test is teamwork," said Pakkun. "People have passed the bell test but no one has ever been able to figure out the actual reason for the test except you guys."

"Why teamwork?" Itachi asked. "It worked but it's useless to both of us in the arena; we can't trust anyone. Not even each other."

Funny thing was I trusted _him_ on this test. I couldn't deny it even if I wanted to. I didn't believe he would betray me or cheat me to win himself. I had whole-heartedly trusted.

And that was bad. Really bad.

Itachi was right; we couldn't trust anyone in the arena. Not even each other. It was just too dangerous. This meant life and death and it was not to be fooled around with. But the real reason of my uneasiness, the thing that was bugging me was: _Why and how can I trust him so easily?_

"That's true," Pakkun agreed. "Even when you are on missions, sometimes teammates become a burden and nothing else matters but the mission itself. No breaking the rules for silly things such as _friends_. You are on your own in the end; it's always that way."

"Exactly," said Itachi. "And those who break the rules are regarded as scum."

"Indeed those in the ninja world who break the rules are scum," said Kakashi. He looked up wistfully towards the sky, as if he were remembering something; a memory. "But those who abandon their friends are worse than scum. Remember what you learnt today; it will help you the most in the arena."

The silence that followed wasn't uncomfortable but it was mysterious. Teamwork was a useless value in the Ninja Games. It's every ninja for himself. People often created teams during the games but in the end, even those teams have to disperse when it's down to the finals. Like I said; every ninja for himself. There was no use for such a thing as teamwork.

Even so, why did I feel that . . . Kakashi was right?

**I suck at fight scenes. Please go easy on me. Here are the Jutsus used:**

_**-Shikyaku no Jutsu (Four Legs Technique)**_

_**-Katon: Gokyakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)**_

_**- Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)**_

_**-Tsuiga no Jutsu (Forgot what it's called in English. Look it up k?)**_

_**-Kawarimi no Jutsu (Body Replacement Technique)**_

_**-Ninken Ninpo: Sajin no Mai (Ninken Ninja Art: Dance of the Dust Cloud)**_

_**-Ninken Ninpo: Ryoken Bunshin (Ninken Ninja Art: Hound Clone)**_

_**-Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu (Fire release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique)**_

**The credits for the Jutsus go to . **

**Read and Review! ^/_\^**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys! Sorry for the delay in updating. School is annoying. That is all. So anyways I'm back with Chapter 7. Enjoy!**

**CHAPTER 7**

It took all my will power to not throw my plate at Kakashi; firstly, my precious lunch was on it and secondly, I knew he'd dodge it and make me look bad.

Stupid pervert.

All was quiet at the table when suddenly Kakashi had set his dirty porn book down and looked at me and Itachi curiously. He then made sly accusations of me and Itachi doing 'it' in the woods. That too doggy style, as he put it, in front of Hotaru and Hiro. All because our scents were mixed up; he didn't believe us when we told him we were tangled in his net trap.

Annoying, perverted old man.

Kakashi chuckled, "Now, I was just messing with you two. Relax."

Itachi and I glared at him. He held up his hands in surrender and resumed his reading. We resumed our meals as well. I swallowed a mouthful of my food and spoke, "So we're heading out to the other training area?"

Kakashi nodded and placed his book down again, "About that . . . there are a few things I must tell you."

Itachi and I remained silent, urging him to continue. The Haimaru twins had stopped eating and turned their attention to Kakashi.

"To give a highlight on the type of Jutsus they will use or may use," Kakashi said as he propped up his elbows on the table. "The tributes from Iwa will mostly be using earth style techniques. The female tribute is the granddaughter of the Tsuchikage and the male is his student, therefore, their Jutsus may be earth styled but far more advanced.

The male tribute of Kiri is one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and he will be carrying his blade, Samehada, to the arena. The blade is usually covered with bandages and I haven't seen it without it's wrappings but watch out for it. The blade has a chakra of its own and it is dangerous; no telling what it could do. As for the female, she is also one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist; she is the only female so far and she wields the twin blades, Kiba."

I shuddered a bit; there was a sword with the exact name as my brother. If I told this to Kiba, he would show off about him being all great and mighty like a sword. My heart ached to know that if I lost, I won't see him again. So I pushed the image of my smiling brother out of my head and focused on Kakashi.

"As a mist Shinobi," Kakashi continued. "Both of them will definitely know the Hidden Mist Jutsu. It calls forth a thick mist to block the enemy's sight of sight so be careful.

The tributes of Kumo also excel in swordsmanship. They are very full of themselves; all Kumo ninja are usually. I took down a Kumo ninja simply by adding fuel to the fire and pissing off a Kumo ninja so much that he let his guard down and started to attack blindly. It was easy after that; maybe the same will work for you guys too. Beware of their blades and Taijutsu; they are very good at them.

I do not know much about the tributes of Ame. The boy seems harmless but the girl seems skilled. The Shinobi in Ame are quite unpredictable. People say that the Shinobi of Ame has seen many gruesome things in the ninja world and are what you would call _experienced._ They know things and they are very tactful . . . so I've heard.

The tributes of Suna are also unpredictable. Their Jutsus can be classified into three; manipulation of sand, like how the Third Kazekage did, wind style and puppet ninjutsu. The victor from last year was a puppet user from Suna, Akasuna no Sasori. They are very keen and usually they focus on quick kill. Bottom line: be alert or else it will be over for you in a second.

The tributes of Oto will definitely use Jutsus based on sound. If you encounter them, you must remember that though their attacks are direct and dodge-able, it has a second effect as well, an effect that will harm you internally; be careful and protect your ears.

The tributes from Yuki are weak. I pity them and if it weren't a matter of life and death I would have saved them or let them live. But it's not. They are easy prey so you need not worry about them . . . much. But don't let your guard down; they are still Shinobi. Same goes for the tributes of Taki and Kusa; they aren't that pathetic but aren't that strong either. Even so, I have a feeling this year's games will be full of surprises so watch out."

Itachi and I nodded in response. I looked down at my plate. I would be meeting the other tributes in a few minutes. Each one of them had wicked tricks up their sleeves and the thought made my stomach churn. The people I was going to meet were way stronger than me and my Ninken combined. I shook my head; I had to stop being such a pessimist.

"Now, two of you, and Hiro and Hotaru of course, please remember to be on your best behavior. The public will be watching. The other tributes will be there too. No matter how annoying they are or even if they pick a fight, walk away and let out your rage in the arena got it?"

"Got it." I replied. Itachi simply nodded and the Haimaru twins let out a bark.

I picked up my glass and took a sip of my orange juice. Kakashi smiled, "One more thing; you two be sure to flirt with each other a lot!"

I choked on my drink. I started to cough violent as I pounded my chest with my fist. Itachi, who sat next to me, patted my back to help me out. As he did so, he looked at Kakashi with a frown. Kakashi gave us two thumbs up, "Yes! Just like that! Oh you two are so cute together!"

"What the hell are you saying?" I said my breathing still ragged.

"What I mean is," Kakashi started to say. "I want you two to be friendly to each other at the training arena. You know, flirt, laugh, and hold hands and all that."

"Why should we do that?" Itachi said as he rolled his eyes. "We're not lovers or anything." I nodded in agreement. I don't know about Itachi but I have never had a lover in my life. Nor have I fallen for someone or anything like that.

"I know," said Kakashi. "But the public will be watching. Give them something to arouse their curiosity. They will be _dying _to know what your relationship is."

"We don't have a relationship," I exclaimed. "And besides, I simply can't fake it."

"What's wrong?" Kakashi taunted with a smile. "Afraid of being close to Itachi?"

I felt the heat rush to my cheeks, "I-I . . . that's not- I mean . . . WHATEVER!"

Itachi and the Haimaru twins looked at me with a somewhat amused expression. I crossed my arms and looked away, "Don't. Say. A. Word."

Kakashi chuckled, "If you give the audience a good show, you are bound to have more sponsors."

I had forgotten about that. Rich people often sent objects of use to selected participants, given that they put on a great show in the arena. Sponsors are very picky and they usually go for the toughest, fastest or smartest; like the tributes of Iwa, Suna, Kumo and Oto. But of course, to send gifts meant money and expenses so only the rich were able to get most of the goods into the arena.

"I don't see how that will get us sponsors." Itachi stated.

Kakashi looked at him, "Well you could get away with your looks; I bet the ladies would die to see a man like you die." Itachi rolled his eyes.

Sometimes, the rich women sent gifts to the good looking fighters, in hopes they would win and maybe they would get lucky with them if they won. Itachi was definitely attractive; the guy had his own fan club back in the village so like Kakashi said, the rich women may send Itachi gifts for his looks. On top of that, he is fast and intelligent and strong too . . .

Damn Uchiha. Damn him and his qualities.

"Anyway," said Kakashi. "If you two pretend to have a relationship, people will go nuts; the star-crossed lovers of Konoha. Oh you will have sponsors waiting in line and gifts raining on you!"

Both Itachi and I remained quiet.

"Or," Kakashi said as he crossed his arms. He gave a bored sigh. "You could leave an impression to the people during the interview tomorrow and improve your skills in a short amount of time and prove yourself in the arena?"

"Well Itachi can manage pretty well on his own," I noted with a hint of bitterness in my voice. "I'll manage on my own too. I don't want to fake something that's not there; I'm not that kind of person."

I excused myself and headed for my room; I needed to wash my face. As I left, I met Itachi's eyes, just for a moment, and they contained a mysterious emotion I could not understand. I tore my gaze and walked away. The Haimaru twins seemed to have sensed my discomfort and so they stayed behind to give me a moment; good dogs.

I closed the door behind me and I threw myself down on the bed. Why was I so bothered about what Kakashi said? He was only looking out for us but why did I react so . . . firmly on faking a relationship with Itachi? It's true that I wasn't the type of person to fake or lie but right now, it mattered a lot; my life, both our lives, depended on it.

No matter how many times I tried telling myself that I was doing it because I can look out for myself and nothing more, the more it seemed like lies. And I had a gut feeling that it really was.

It's not like I had a crush on Itachi or something. It's not like the guy didn't have the looks and skills; he had it ten times, no a hundred times more than any guy I had ever met. He was definitely attractive and maybe if we had met in a different time and place, I would have fallen for him but it that wasn't the case right now; in Konoha it was all about survival and love seemed to be a faraway thing.

I turned deep red as I sat up straight; why am I thinking of such a thing right now?! This is insane and simply ridiculous. We were about to be thrown into an arena and we were going to fight to the death; I had no time to be fantasizing about Itachi.

I got up from the bed and walked towards the bathroom. I stared at the face in the mirror; my face was so red that it almost covered my Inuzuka tattoos. I removed my forehead protector and placed it near the sink. I turned on the tap and splashed my face a couple of times with water. The cool liquid soothed and calmed my red face. I tied my pony tail properly and put my forehead protector back on.

As I dried my face on a towel, there was a soft knock at my door.

"Hana," It was Itachi's voice. "It's time to leave."

I sighed and looked at myself one more time in the mirror. I smiled a crooked smile and turned to walk towards the door. I opened the door and I was greeted my Itachi and Kakashi standing a few feet away from me, near the exit. Hiro and Hotaru were in front of me in an instant. I patted their heads and walked forward; they followed close behind.

"We're going to the training area via teleportation," Kakashi told us. "Remember what I told you."

We nodded and followed him down the same path we had walked yesterday. We entered the same chamber from where we were teleported from Konoha. I longed to reverse the Jutsu and go back home to my family but that was impossible; there was no turning back now.

Kakashi instructed us to stand at the centre of the seal. We did as we were told. Kakashi gave us a two-fingered salute and a smile before he pulled out a kunai and sliced his thumb. He made the hand seals eight times, to make up for the lack of people to perform the Jutsu and then placed his hand on the floor.

The seal began to glow and once again, I felt my body turn into air. It was the same process again. At first my body turned light as air and it felt like my existence was being wiped out. Then suddenly, this strange force of gravity started to pull my body downwards. When we reached the other side of the seal, I was kinda shaky. It's going to take a while for me to get used to it but at least I didn't grab onto Itachi like I did the last time.

We were in a room, slightly bigger than were we were few moments ago. The walls were made of cement, making the room chilly, and there were no windows. There was only one door with two torches lit up on either side.

A guard wearing a simple black yukata and a sword strapped to his belt was waiting for us. He had long black hair tied in a high ponytail and his eyes were a strange electric blue color. He spoke to us in a monotone, "Tributes of Konoha follow me."

He started to walk towards the door. Itachi shoved his hands into his pocket and started to follow him. I did the same and signaled the Haimaru twins to follow as well. We walked down a long dark and narrow corridor. I was getting tired of long dark and narrow corridors. Nevertheless, I kept walking and didn't complain.

All the way I was thinking about the other tributes. They will be merciless and gruesome no doubt but what aroused my curiosity was the type of Jutsus they were capable of. Kakashi had given us a brief highlight on it, however, some things were still not clear and that put me at unease.

At the end of the corridor (which in my opinion, went for miles), was a polished brown door. On the other side, I could hear sounds of the other tributes training. I took a deep breath and looked straight ahead. The guard pushed the door open and gestured for us to walk in.

The training room here was much, much larger. It had all the equipment; weights, targets and straw dummies for practicing, weapons, climbing posts and more. The whole place was spread out widely so that each individual could have their space to practice.

The tributes also wore tracksuits like Itachi and I but of different colors. The tributes of Iwa wore brown, Oto wore purple, Kiri wore indigo, Yuki wore blue, Taki wore red, Kusa wore green, which was a lighter shade than ours, Suna wore grey and Kumo wore white.

All the tributes I had seen on T.V were here and they looked as menacing as ever.

The boy from Iwa seemed to be playing with something in his hands as the girl practiced her shuriken throws. Her shurikens not only hit the bull's eye on all five targets but it pierced right through the dummies and hit the wall behind them. She gave a smirk and turned to the boy who rolled his eyes and mumbled something.

The tributes from Suna were together. The boy was playing with something that looked like a wooden finger but the top wasn't curved or round but a sharp pointy needle. The girl was sitting next to him and was polishing an object; a huge fan.

The tributes of Kumo were engaged in a swords battle with each other while the tributes of Kiri sat down and sipped water from their water bottles, however, the male tribute was holding a large object covered in bandages; his sword Samehada. The tributes of Oto were simply watching the other tributes; observing, analyzing.

The tributes of Taki were with an instructor, learning how to set traps while the Yuki tributes were learning how to make a fire with another instructor. The tributes of Kusa were sitting near a couple of weights and talking. I did not see the orange-haired male tribute of Ame, who reminded me of Kiba, anywhere around but I saw the female tribute from Ame at the far corner of the room, staring out the large glass window.

I followed her gaze and looked outside. It was raining. I hadn't even noticed. Was this another stupid projection or the real thing? Whatever it may be, I missed the rain. The rain washed away all things evil and sinful and purified everything. I wanted to go out and feel the raindrops on my face but right now, that wasn't an option.

Once Itachi and I entered the room, all eyes turned on us. I felt uneasy with all the stares. It wasn't because I feared them or anything but the fact that I didn't like attention; at all. My eyes met with the female tribute of Iwa. Her eyes were cold and black but she gave me a malicious grin, like she was already planning on how to kill me.

I tore my gaze away and clenched my fists. I couldn't afford to show any signs of weakness at all. The people would be watching. My mom and Kiba would be watching. I had to be strong. It's now or never. Hotaru and Hiro growled lowly by my side.

"Ah the tributes of Konoha," said a voice. "Now we can begin. Gather around everyone!"

The voice belonged to a man who was walking towards us from the far corner of the room. He looked like he was in his mid twenties with shaggy brown hair under a bandana he wore around his head. He looked at each and every one of us with is pitch black eyes. He had a sharp piece of metal, a senbon, in his mouth, and he wore a black tracksuit.

Everyone, some reluctantly, formed a semi-circle around the man. They kept distance from each other though.

"My name is Genma," He said in a clear voice. "Welcome all tributes. Here you train in the company of each other. You all know the rules right? No fights with each other and no creating unnecessary commotions. The public eyes will be watching so be on your best behavior."

My eyes drifted to the upper left corner of the room; a black camera glared back at me. I looked around and found that there were cameras everywhere. I then caught a glimpse of orange on the ceiling but it disappeared just as quickly as I saw it.

Genma chuckled and looked at the ceiling, "Come on kiddo, you can't skip this. This is important."

Something, or rather _someone_, jumped down and landed next to the female tribute of Ame; it was the orange- haired boy. He was very much like Kiba in many ways and I resisted the urge to pull the boy, whose name I didn't even know, into a hug and cry because of the pain of missing my family. But that would be very embarrassing . . . not to mention the people watching.

The boy's brown eyes met my own. He then looked away quickly and down at his feet and I could also see the tips of his ear turning red. He shifted a bit, looking uncomfortable. I raised an eyebrow; so he's kinda shy huh?

Genma then spat his senbon out and it landed in front of the boy from Iwa. Said boy raised an eyebrow and the man.

"We'll start with introductions," said Genma. "We'll start here and then move n towards the left until everyone finishes. State your full name and village."

"Deidara," the boy said flatly. "From Iwa, un."

"Kurotsuchi," the girl from Iwa said with a smirk. "Also from Iwa."

"Hoshigaki Kisame of the Mist." The boy from Kiri said with a creepy grin, showing his pointy shark-like teeth.

"Ringo Ameyuri of the Mist." The girl spoke quietly. Her tone was quiet but was deadly was well. She, I noticed, also had sharp and pointy teeth.

"Temari from Suna." The girl with the fan replied.

"Hey everyone," the boy from Suna said cheerfully. All he got was a glare from some of the tributes. "The name's Kankuro, also from Suna. Nice meeting you all!"

"Tsuchi Kin from the Sound Village." the girl from Oto said with a sly and mischievous smile.

"Kidomaru of the Sound." The boy with multiple arms spoke. I noticed that his tracksuit had six sleeves for all six of his arms. I wonder who made it . . . anyways it was creepy.

"Karui," the red-haired girl from Kumo said as she flipped her hair. "From Kumo, y'all."

"Omoi," the boy from Kumo said as he twirled the stick of his lollipop. "Also from Kumo."

"Konan from the Village Hidden in the Rain," The female tribute of Ame spoke in a crystal clear. She was very elegant and beautiful but at the same time, she seemed deadly and mysterious, just like the tribute from Kiri. Maybe even more. . .

"Yahiko," the orange-haired boy said sheepishly. He gestured to Konan with his thumb. "Same village as her."

"K-Kenji," the boy from Yuki said shakily. "From Yuki. And this is Misaki; she can't talk." My heart clenched; this girl couldn't even speak, how could she win the games? She didn't have the ability to speak and now she would have to fight for her life? It wasn't fair. The boy didn't stand much of a chance either.

"It could be a trap." Itachi murmured to me. I looked at him. He was looking ahead instead. Maybe Itachi was right. Like Kakashi said, this year's games might be full of surprises and the Yuki tributes might actually fight back. Maybe it was it was a trap. I looked at the girl again; she seemed harmless. Itachi was wrong; this girl was really helpless and it wasn't a fake.

"Ayuzawa Ayako," The girl from Kusa spoke. "From the Hidden Grass Village."

"Kurosaki Ryu," the boy tribute from Kusa said. "From Kusa."

"Takumi Kenichi," the male tribute from Taki said. "From Taki."

"Matsumoto Shizuka," the female from Taki spoke. "From the Waterfall Village."

It was my turn next, "Inuzuka Hana from Konoha. And these are Hiro and Hotaru." I gestured to my Haimaru twins who were still growling lowly.

Itachi was last, "Uchiha Itachi of the Hidden Leaf Village."

The word Uchiha must was triggered something. All the tributes stared at Itachi with surprise, amusement or fear. It was like as if the fact that Itachi was an Uchiha put him on top of everyone's Hit-List. Now I definitely knew that the Uchiha and the dreaded Ninja Games were related. But what was the relation anyways?

"Okay," said Genma. "Now that introductions are done, we shall disperse. Remember, no trouble. There are cameras all over the place showing you to the public eyes and we have guards all around as well. Happy Ninja Games and May the odds be ever in your favor." And with that, Genma disappeared with a puff of smoke.

Everyone dispersed and went back to training. Eyes lingered on me and Itachi, mostly on Itachi, but eventually they all went back to training. I looked at Itachi, "We should keep a low profile. Let's train at the survival department."

Itachi nodded, "Alright."

We walked together towards the back where the instructors were teaching how to set traps, make fire other survival training.

I was about to suggest we go to learn how to set traps first but Itachi cut me off.

"I think we should train separately." Itachi said slowly.

I looked at him, puzzled, "Why?"

Itachi gave a small smirk, "Trust me, it's for the best."

And once again, I trusted him without question and nodded my head slowly in response. He then did something unexpected; he leaned down towards me. We were really close; our foreheads were touching and his breath fanned my face. I couldn't move or think properly. I felt the heat rise to my cheeks.

When I found my voice, I spoke quietly, "What are you doing?" He didn't reply. . .nor didn't he move from the position we were in. Instead, I felt his hands hold onto my shoulders. I should have pushed him away. But I didn't. Instead, I remained very still.

And then I remembered what Kakashi said.

"I told you," I said as looked away from him. "I don't need to fake something that isn't there; I can handle myself."

Itachi put his cold hand under my chin and turned my face so I faced him. He smirked, "Hn, I know."

"Then why?" I whispered. I hated that he was making me feel so weak, so . . . helpless and enchanted. I wonder where that came from. But I couldn't deny what I was feeling either.

He didn't reply me. He simply tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. His hand then lingered there for a while before he pulled away abruptly, but gently, and walked away from me, leaving me confused and breathless.

**I added a lot of OC's here but they aren't that important though. So? How was it? Good? Bad? Fantastic? (Yeah right)Horrible? Do tell okay? Read and review ^_^**


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